Silver Resistance: Mystery of the Heart
by Diego Zeyon
Summary: Side-story to ScytheRider's PMD:Silver Resistance. Zona, a Vulpix, is brought to the Gold Division after the destruction of his hometown; he desires to join a Team and fight, but how can he hope to succeed if he can't even understand his own heart?
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: So. Bit of an interesting story behind this one. Back when I was working on chapter 16 of my main story, _A Fear of Change_, and ScytheRider was working on a particular chapter of his main story, _PMD: Silver Resistance_, we got to chatting and realized that both of us were writing about Ninetales, and that it tended to be difficult to do so—moreso in his case, since the Nineteles is a direct narrator in his side-story.

Talking about Ninetales eventually got us around to talking about Vulpix, and I said (rather more boldly than I intended) that writing Vulpix was easy. Perhaps I should have said easi_er_ than writing Ninetales. So he challenged me to write a story focusing around a Vulpix, and after a little more thought suggested I do it within the universe of _Silver Resistance._ I have done that, and more, by actually inserting this story into the timeline of his.

Lastly, this is a side story—it won't be terribly long when it's finished. Furthermore, I won't take explicit pains to explain what's going on. If you want all of the details, I suggest looking into ScytheRider's _Silver Resistance._

As a disclaimer: Pokémon and all related official material do not belong to me; further, Ambera, Ray, Leo, and all other characters/places/ideas, as well as the quote that begins the story, are the property of ScytheRider. I lay claim only to specific points of the plot, and of characters not created by aforementioned author (Zonaphèras, Lionel, Anise, etc.).

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**Silver Resistance: Mystery of the Heart**

_By birthright, many Pokémon must suffer a difficult childhood. … there is the meek … Vulpix …, who must learn the reality of loneliness and disconnection. … feelings and instincts raging deep within its heart ... all at once. The Vulpix, born to be tame, does not understand what they are, or what they mean about the world, or which one to act upon. … it is alone absolutely, … unable to communicate what it means, or how it feels, unable to understand the slightest thing about the heart which burns inside it._

-Legend, Storyteller Ninetales, of Team Flamewheel, Emerald Division (formerly of the Gold) of the Amberan Resistance.

**Chapter 1**

"_The Master's word is law!"_

"_Run, little Pokémon, run!"_

"_Now, you understand what it means to disobey the Master!"_

With a whimper and a reflexive jerk, Zona woke up.

Around him, the other refugees… the other _orphans_…still continued to sleep, perhaps having nightmares of their own. Shaking, Zona took another look around, but there seemed to be no one else awake.

The Vulpix set his head back down on his forepaws, but it was a foregone conclusion that he would be unable to sleep now. He was lucky enough to have gotten to sleep the first time.

With the barest _whoof!_ the flame above him flickered from blue to orange, and slowly began growing brighter. The heat did not reach him, even here, but he felt safer beneath the flame.

It wasn't as if anyone else wanted to be anywhere near fire, he reflected sadly. Indeed, even around him—the tamest of Fire-types—there was a large gap of empty floor before the next Pokémon. His reflections began to turn bitter as his eyes wandered from side to side; of course, even here, in the place where they were supposed to be safe, he was alone.

This moody musing continued uninterrupted for several minutes. The flame above him seemed to have reached its highest brightness, but everyone else still slept. They were all shocked into wakefulness, however, as a Jolteon marched into the room.

"Up! Up! We can't have you sleeping all day!"

Groggy, complaining and mumbling, the other young Pokémon slowly got to their feet. Zona had already stood, and though he kept his eyes down he could feel the Jolteon's gaze on him for a moment. He'd probably noticed.

The Jolteon waited patiently for the grumbling to die down, the face- and eye-rubbing to cease; then, in a gentler tone, he continued, "We can't have you all stay here. This is a Resistance Base, not an orphans' shelter."

Someone in the crowd muttered, "…Then why'd you bring us here in the first place?" Apparently, they underestimated the Jolteon's hearing.

"Because it was late, you had all been traveling for days, and things still needed to be worked out." The Electric Pokémon began to pad from side to side. "You all needed a safe place to recuperate. We gave you that. But there are too many of you here to just let you stay; you would be an unfair strain on our resources."

"Unfair?" asked the Shinx in front of Zona.

"If you worked, you could earn your meals. But if you were simply staying here, you would be getting those meals without earning them." The Jolteon shook his head. "As I said, we're a Resistance Base, not an orphans' shelter. We can't afford it."

"So… What are you going to do with us?" This was a Machop. "Just dump us back out into the world and leave us to the Master and his Watchers!"

This started a tumult; the elder among the crowd began to protest and jeer, and the younger ones, closer to Zona's own age, began to whimper and plead. The Vulpix himself, though he felt a deep pit of fear open up deep inside, kept his eyes trained on the Jolteon, wanting to know for sure before he made any assumptions.

"_Quiet!"_ roared the Jolteon, sparks beginning to arc across his fur in irritation. The survivors all did as he asked, though the older ones' faces still carried a great deal of resentment.

"We will do what we can," he continued, closing his eyes as if to quell his irritation, "to get you homes in other places, far removed from the Master. We do not claim to be able to replace your families or the possessions that you lost; but we will do our absolute best to give you what we can."

"What if we wanna fight back?" asked the same Machop.

"How many of you feel that way?" countered the Jolteon quietly. The Machop, whose name was Eli, raised his fist, as did all of the other older Pokémon around him. None of the other Pokémon in the room seemed inclined to agree.

After a moment of silence, and just before the Jolteon was about to begin speaking again, a quiet voice issued from by the second flame upon the wall. "I do, t-too."

Everyone around Zona turned to look at him, but he did not look back; his eyes were kept focused on the Jolteon, who looked back at him, plainly surprised.

"Zona?" scoffed Eli. "What d'you think you're doing?"

"Yeah, Zona_ferior!_" laughed a Meditite near him. The Vulpix, ashamed now, looked down, trying to hide from the erupting laughter.

"Quiet!" snapped the Jolteon again. "You, Vulpix… Your name is Zona?"

He nodded halfheartedly.

"And what makes you want to fight?"

He didn't respond. The Jolteon waited politely for a moment, then said, "Well, whether you really do or not… Know what you're getting into.

"Our life isn't an easy one. It's hard. It's filled with risks. The rewards, especially to begin with, don't seem worth it." He was pacing again. "Training is harsh. The Mystery Dungeons are harsh. And _once you get in,_ _you cannot back out._"

"I'm still doin' it!" declared the Machop. His friends all chorused the same. When the Jolteon looked at Zona, the Vulpix managed a nod.

"Fine." The Jolteon paused thoughtfully for a moment. "You will all be assigned temporary living quarters until arrangements have been made. There are Pokémon waiting outside that will show you to them. You may go."

The crowd began to shuffle out through the small door; there was congestion for a few moments, but then it cleared.

Zona had not moved; nor had the Jolteon. After a few minutes, they were the only ones in the room.

"Come here," said the Eeveelution finally. Zona obediently padded forward. "Why didn't you follow them? …You don't talk much, do you?" he added after a moment, when Zona failed to answer.

"…'M used to being l-last."

"You'll never get anywhere with an attitude like that," declared the Jolteon, sighing. "Come on, then, I'll take you to your room."

He was glad for the help, Zona reflected as they walked. This place was a veritable maze.

"Why _do_ you want to fight?" asked the Jolteon again after several minutes. This time there was no one else to rush the conversation, and he seemed quite relaxed and willing to wait for Zona to answer.

"My parents," he answered as they headed up a flight of stairs.

"No disrespect, but I've never heard of Vulpix being terribly revenge-oriented."

"Both involved w-with the w-war, I l-l-learned...at the e-end..." mumbled Zona as they descended another flight. "…Father was on your s-s-side. Mother... M-M-Mother's on theirs." He shook his head. "Wasn't sure, at f-first, what I wanted to do, but…"

The image of his mother ruthlessly tearing out his father's throat came rushing back to the forefront of his mind.

"_You brat! Don't—don't run! Zona! No, Zona, wait, I—!"_

"Huh?" The Jolteon looked back to see the Vulpix standing in place, shaking. A pitying look on his face, he returned to the young Pokémon's side.

"…N-n-not _my_ m-m-mother," he breathed, and tears began to form in his eyes.

"This is Zona. He's going to be staying with you for awhile."

The Treecko seemed taken aback. "Him? But… Voltali, he's a Fire-type…"

The Jolteon sighed, annoyed. "Yes, but… All the other rooms are full. Someone made a mistake clearing the rooms for the refugees from Leppa Town." He hesitated, sending a glance back at Zona, who waited in the doorway. "…He wants to join a team, anyway."

"Him?" the Treecko cried incredulously, but before she could continue the Raichu, previously lying, seemingly asleep, in the far corner of the room, placed a paw on her shoulder.

"Enough, okay, Taka?" He smiled at Zona—a warm, sincere smile. The Vulpix got the feeling that the Raichu was the kind of Pokémon who put his whole heart into whatever he did. "Besides, we're lacking a Fire-type, aren't we? You'll make a nice addition."

Taka continued to stare at him warily—and rightfully so, Zona had to admit to himself, though he also felt that that argument was beginning to get old.

"Right, well," said Voltali, after a moment. "Ray, since you seem exceptionally friendly this morning… Show him around, would you?"

"Got it," replied the Raichu. Zona stood to one side at the Jolteon passed him on the way out, but he soon lost track of him as he entered the stream of Pokémon headed every which way and disappeared around a corner. "Well, don't just stand there," Ray continued. "Come in."

Zona did so, hesitating a moment when Taka's gaze didn't leave him.

"Well!" continued Ray cheerily. "I guess you're not part of the Team yet, but I might as well introduce everyone. Er, everyone who's here," he added, after a glance around, "which seems to be only the two of us. I'm Ray, and this unfriendly lizard here is Taka, a Treecko. We've got a few other members—Leo, a Shinx, Evan, an Eevee, Tyson, a Larvitar, among others." He spread all four of his paws dramatically, and announced, "We're Team Stripes!"

His grin slipped a few notches when his antics failed to entice so much as a smirk out of Zona. Taka seemed to be suppressing a laugh.

"…Er. That Jolteon that just left was one of the former members. Voltali. I don't think he and Evan are related, but you never know." The Raichu seemed to regain his mental balance. "Besides, real family doesn't mean a whole lot. The Resistance Team _is _your family."

Zona cocked his head, mouth slightly agape, as though wondering something. As of yet, his eyes hadn't met Ray's.

"Something bothering you?"

"…Resistance… _Team_?" he asked quietly.

"What?" Ray seemed nonplussed. "Oh. _Oh. _Right. You don't know a whole lot, do you?" He crossed his forepaws, scrutinizing the Vulpix closely. "Come on, let's go get some food. I'll explain stuff over breakfast."

Zona had thought that his community had been large. He had assumed wrongly, it seemed, because he could tell that the whole population of Leppa Town could fit easily inside the Resistance Base's cafeteria, and still have a decent amount of room left over.

"So," Ray was saying as Zona picked at his food—Berries, mostly, though it seemed that the cooks had also added a small portion of meat, in case he decided to be carnivorous. "We're split up into teams to sort of divide the labor, you know? And everyone, when they join the Resistance, is sort of uprooted and they lose everything they used to have, so it's nice to have a small group to call your own, rather than just being one of a number. I'd try the Pecha," he added as Zona hesitated. The Vulpix nodded and took a bite from the Berry, a kind he'd never had before, and took a moment to both savor the taste and to think of something to say.

"…Team S-Stripes," he began, but Ray replied instantly, apparently thinking that was all the Vulpix had to say.

"That's what we're called. I think it originates from some human idiom—earning your stripes, or something. Though that doesn't sound fair to _me_," he mused, "since some Pokémon are born with stripes…"

"Are you the l-leader, then?" Zona finished.

"What? …Me? No," Ray declared hurriedly, waving his paws in a rejecting gesture. "No, haha, not me."

"But you're evolved…"

"Oh." Ray laughed. "Ha! Is that what you thought? Well, Pikachu are a lot like Vulpix. No matter how strong or how old they get, they don't evolve unless they get their paws on an evolutionary stone. I was lucky enough to get one, and I evolved, so that…"

Zona, who had been quietly devouring the chunk of meat (and what Pokémon had it come from, he wondered?), did not at first notice the Raichu's silence. After he did, however, a quick glance to the side and at the Raichu's suddenly serious face told Zona that it was a statement he did not need finished, at least not yet.

"…Anyway, for leaders, we've got two: Lionel, the Linoone, we all call him 'The Captain,' and Anise, the Ambipom. See, Stripes is a training team—Pokémon like you, and me to begin with, who've just joined or are really young go on teams like this for, well, training. We have combat exercises, go out on simple missions… Occasionally, if you've proven yourself to be capable enough, you'll be part of a small squad sent into a Mystery Dungeon."

"…How long have you b-been on the team?"

"Me?" Ray took a bite out of a Salac Berry. "A little while, I guess… I joined when I was a Pikachu, which was… How long ago?" he wondered aloud. "Um. Well, like I said, awhile. Long enough to go to another Team, I guess, but I've been waiting, 'cause the team I _really_ want to be on is Team Remorse!"

He paused here, grinning; it seemed to Zona that he was waiting for some kind of response, but he was clueless. Presently, the Raichu's ear twitched and he looked over, seeing Zona's blank stare.

"…Oh. Yeah. Sorry, it's…been awhile since I met someone who didn't know what Team Remorse was." The fur on his cheeks seemed to bristle out: he was embarrassed. "They're only, like, the best team in the Division. It's the team to be on, let me tell you. They're all so strong, I bet the Master himself wouldn't be able to beat 'em if they met head on. They've got some of the rarest items, too, and some of the best strategists… They get the most important missions…"

"…So…it's the t-team everyone wants to be on?" Zona asked.

"Sure, but if I keep working toward it, I know I'll get there one day… You know, I heard that their leader and his friend went off awhile back. The rest of the team came back from a big mission, but neither Scythe nor Shander came back with them."

"He's back," grunted a voice from beside Zona. The Vulpix cried out, leaping off of the bench and to the floor, startled. On the seat next to where he'd been sat a Sneasel, meticulously slicing his Berries into smaller chunks.

"Zeven," said Ray with a laugh. "Sneaking up on people, like always."

"Part of my nature," Zeven replied. "Dark-type. We're sneaky by genetics. But yeah, I heard Scythe came back really late last night. Brought some Pokémon with him." He shrugged, then looked back at Zona, who was still catching his breath. "Sorry. Zeven, senior member of Team Stripes. You are?"

Zona swallowed and, placing his shaking forepaws on the bench, pulled himself back up to his place. Ashamed, again, of his own cowardice, he closed his eyes and continued to shake.

"Zona," Ray answered for him, as soon as it became clear that the Vulpix wasn't going to answer for himself. "I'd say you scared him into silence, Zeven, but he's a pretty quiet guy anyway." Zona nodded. "He's one of the survivors from that massacre of Leppa Town that was in the report Pidgeotto sent around a few days ago."

"…The one where the Master's soldiers killed all the adults, but left all the kids alive?" Zeven asked, oblivious to Zona's sudden stillness. "Honestly, it's enough to call the place Orphan Village... I feel for you, Zona."

The Vulpix began to shake again, but this time it was not for fear. Zeven, still focused on his own plate, did not notice.

"So how'd you end up finding Ray, of all Pokémon?"

"He wants to join Team Stripes, Zeven," explained Ray, who was looking at the Vulpix with a mix of concern and fear.

"I guess you've got reason enough," the Sneasel admitted. "Having your parents killed off like that, all of a sudden…"

"Zeven," muttered Ray warningly, but Zona had heard enough.

"Shut up," he said, and the air around him began to shimmer with heat.

"Eh?" This, it seemed, was enough to get Zeven's attention. The Sneasel leapt away, claws held forward, for a moment, in a combat stance. This bravado melted away to a look of fear as he looked into Zona's eyes, which had gone from mellow brown to a threatening off-crimson. "Wh—whoa… I-I'm sorry, I didn't…"

"Zona!" Ray barked. The Vulpix ignored him; he had turned toward the Sneasel, and taken a step, when he felt a sudden tug at his midsection. It was Ray. "Cut it out, this isn't the time for that…"

The boiling rage did not disappear; it simply dropped down to a simmer. Zona turned back to his emptied plate, took a deep breath, then sent another glower at Zeven.

"You talk…as if you understand how I feel." He shook his head. "You do not. You cannot." He was shaking again. "Just… don't….presume to understand me, Sneasel."

Zeven got back to his feet, as scared now of Zona as Zona had been of him. He did not take his seat until the Vulpix, plate in his mouth, had left the table, and Ray, with a worried glance at the Sneasel, with him.

Zona did not know the layout of the base; indeed, he doubted he ever would, as he had a terrible memory for directions. As such, when he left the cafeteria, he wandered. Ray stayed with him, not speaking, apparently either afraid of incurring the Vulpix's latent wrath or content to let him, figuratively, cool down. They passed several other Pokémon; some of them nodded to Ray, others proceeded to ignore them both.

Later on, he couldn't remember which way he'd gone. Up? Down? Perhaps, and probably, a combination of both. He was angry for a while, infuriated at the tactlessness that Zeven had displayed; this, eventually, cooled, and with it went the still-uncomfortable, unfamiliar heat that had built in his stomach.

Presently he stopped and sat where he was in the hallway. He stared forward for a minute, lost in thought, but when he heard Ray approaching him, he cocked his head and said in an even voice, "I shouldn't have d-done that."

He turned, regret obvious now in the way he carried himself. "…I should n-n-not have… lost control. It is n-not something a Vulpix does."

"Well. What _I _think," Ray replied after a moment to think, crossing his forepaws, "is that you're trying too hard to be mature."

"…Vulpix _are_ mature."

"Now, I'm not an authority, of course, but I think you're stretching it just a little." Ray frowned. "I mean… How old are you?"

"…One and a half."

"One and a half," Ray affirmed. "Not even two yet. You just lost your parents, your village was destroyed, and you think _that's_ not a reason to get mad when you're prodded?"

The fire in Zona's stomach began to burn again. "You… You yourself admitted you were no authority. Why are you attempting to counsel me in the ways of my species, when you have no expertise in the area?"

"Because I don't think it's right that you should dictate how you behave just based on your species!" Ray cried, looking exasperated for the first time. "No one gets anywhere if they're always, 'Oh, it's always been this way, I might as well comply.' Where would we be if Lucario hadn't decided to turn against the Master? He broke the mold, and here we are…"

Zona didn't seem moved. "And yet… the Master still stands."

"But not as firmly as he did all those years ago!"

Zona sighed, looking away. "…Forgive me. I am…only starting new conflicts." He swallowed. "…Perhaps it is better I say nothing at all."

Ray had not taken him to mean that literally, but after this the Vulpix did indeed say nothing at all for several minutes. Ray's usual boisterous manner seemed to have left him, and so he could only stand, ears down and tail curled in agitation, shuffling his weight awkwardly from paw to paw. Zona had an impassive look on his face—completely blank, as though he'd thrown out emotion.

"Look," Ray said finally. "I…didn't mean to make you angry. I know I did—I know you're trying to hide behind that mask of silence." At this, Zona turned to look at him. "But… Team Stripes probably isn't going to be like your family. We survive because we trust each other, and we trust each other because we're not afraid to show who we are."

The silence that followed was not as forced; Zona's face had gone from blank to thoughtful again, and Ray, having said what he wanted to say, now sat against the wall of the hallway and waited for the reclusive Vulpix to respond. Once, he opened his mouth, but shut it quickly as an Ursaring stomped past, humming cheerfully to himself.

Finally, "…I don't…understand."

Ray couldn't think of anything to say to that, utterly bewildered by the Vulpix's confusion. To cover this, he stood back up and walked slowly past Zona, who, not wanting to get lost, stood himself and began to follow.

"How much do you know about fighting?"

"…Fighting?"

"You're going to have to know, to survive in Mystery Dungeons."

"…Wild Pokémon… yes…"

Realizing something at last, Ray turned his head to look at the Vulpix as they continued to walk. "I think that's the second time I've mentioned Mystery Dungeons to you, and both times you've responded like you know what I'm talking about."

"I do." A pause. "There is…was…one…n-near my community. Some of the other children would…throw me in, s-sometimes. The Machop and Tyrogue, especially… They didn't like m-me." He paused awkwardly every few words, as though expecting to be silenced; this contrasted with his forceful, purposeful speech a few minutes prior, when he'd been angry. Even the stutter seemed to fluctuate with his mood.

"Throw you?"

This was met with the kind of silence that brooked no argument. Ray knew he'd overstepped boundaries, not having earned the Vulpix's trust enough to ask him to continue. Hastily, he strove to backpedal the conversation to a point that Zona would be willing to speak.

"Um. So you know how to fight?"

"…I c-c-can Tackle."

"…Right," said Ray, after a pause. "That's what I thought."

They descended another flight of stairs, passing a Hitmonchan who moved with the flowing grace of one who had just completed meditation. He nodded to Ray, who smiled back. His eyes lingered for an instant longer on Zona, but then the Vulpix too was greeted with a respectful nod, which Zona returned hesitantly. At the bottom of the staircase, Ray paused, but gestured at Zona to move forward. Slowly, he did so, finding himself in a semi-dark cave (darker than the rest of the Base that he'd seen), somewhat wide, but completely devoid of Pokémon. There were worn benches on either side, which seemed old, if relatively well-kept, with the exception of the closest bench to his right, which looked as though it had been broken, then repaired, several times.

At the end of the hall was a doorway obscured by a worn, tattered red cloth, which seemed to be blowing in some non-existent wind.

"Our dojo," explained Ray. "Run by an…interesting Pokémon."

"…We are going to t-train?"

"_You_ are," said Ray, "because I have an idea about getting you onto our team faster. But you have to know how to do more than Tackle. Every Pokémon knows that."

There was unrestrained fear in the Vulpix's eyes as he turned back to look at the Raichu. "…Me? But not…n-not you?"

"We have a mission tomorrow. Blackriver City. I need to help prepare."

"But…"

"I'll come and pick you up later. Besides… Even if you don't get around to actually training, Domo's a bit of a philosopher and counselor, too. If you need to talk, he's the Pokémon to talk to."

The sincere smile was back on his face. Despite his misgivings, Zona found himself unable to say no.

"…Why…so fast, though?" he asked at last.

"You'll see," said Ray with a mischievous wink, gesturing for Zona to go forward, into the dojo. "Go on. Have fun. Open up, if you can."

He turned and began walking back up the staircase. The sincerity and honesty lingered with Zona, though; enough that he felt he could trust Ray's word. After steeling himself, he walked the length of the empty hallway and through the gently swaying cloth.

On the other side of the arch he froze, mouth half-open, hardly daring to believe his eyes.

The Pokémon, which had been floating with its back turned to him, spun to face him, a look of surprise on its face. Then it smiled, and laughed a laugh that shone in its crystal blue eyes, doing a backflip, and zooming toward him.

In an instant, Zona found himself muzzle-to-muzzle with a Mew.

What could have reasonably passed for a staring contest ensued. An excited smile played across the Mew's mouth, while Zona's remained open; neither blinked for a minute, and then Zona said, "N-no."

The Mew cocked its head.

"You are n-not… a Mew. Some illusion perhaps… Or an exceptionally s-skilled Ditto…" He shook his head. "But if the Resistance had a r-real M-Mew… this war would already be over. I wouldn't…n-need to be here."

The Mew floated back, eyes still glittering happily. "Good!" it chirped. "It's good to see that there are still those who believe in logic, above what imperfect eyes may see." It shot up, did a backflip, and shot straight down at the center of the ornately-designed floor. Well before impact, however, it blurred out of shape, becoming a blob of pink goo, which splattered somewhat ungraciously on the floor. It lay motionless for a second, and then began to pull back into itself, reforming into a Ditto.

"Good indeed," it said, its voice issuing from somewhere within the formless blob, before it began to shapeshift again. Zona found himself staring at a perfect replica of himself, down to the annoying cowlick on one of his curls that he could never get to behave. "Now," said the Ditto in Zona's own voice, "I don't believe we have met. I am Domo, master of this dojo, a Ditto, as you observed." His voice sounded wrong coming from this doppelganger, too confident; as well, Domo was apparently not afflicted by Zona's stutter.

Haltingly, more unnerved by the fact that he was talking to himself than anything else, Zona told the Ditto who he was and why he was there.

"A survivor," repeated Domo quietly. "Yes… I have heard about those events. And you say it is that you wish to fight?" He smiled. The action looked foreign on Zona's face; it wasn't that he'd never smiled before, but that he felt at the moment that he would never smile again. "Then, my friend, you have come to the right place. Training is what I offer, against one hundred and forty four species which I am capable of becoming, against all types, capable of learning what you can learn and passing it to you." Here he bowed, stretching one paw out in front of him and taking the other off of the ground, lowering his muzzle to the floor. Reflexively—this was a gesture known among Vulpix and Ninetales—Zona returned it; the action was jerky, however, because he was caught of guard when the other Vulpix had done it first—in doing so, had declared himself to be less than Zona.

"…You do know… what bowing first m-means?" he asked, standing again.

"I do. But it is a greeting among Vulpix, and since you seemed that you were not going to do it I initiated." Domo paused. "Should you become my student, do not think that makes you above me."

"…Certainly n-not, sir. I…I was simply curious."

"Then. Will you train?"

It was Ray's idea, he remembered. Something about him needing to train…

"…Yes."

The Ditto shapeshifted again, this time to a Hitmonlee, which lowered itself to the ground and adopted a meditative stance. "Very well. You have shown yourself to be a student of the mind, as is common among Vulpix. Your…parents, have they taught you of meditation?"

"…Yes, sir." They were starting already? Zona tried to take it in stride.

"What know you of your Ember?"

"…Sir?"

"The fire that is the heart of your being! It is the force, the spark of life, in all Fire-types. Yours is contained within—a secret, fitting for a race that says little and knows much. But doubtless you have felt it already—when you are angry, perhaps, or when you are tired of being bullied…"

"…I…kn-know of it." Zona's gaze wandered to the side, though he wasn't looking at the walls—his mind was far away, recalling earlier when he had been angry at Zeven. "…My stomach begins to boil… If I feel strongly enough, the air around me b-begins to shimmer…"

"Indeed? That speaks of great power for one so young. Do you know how to control it?"

Zona shook his head.

"Ah!" Hitmonlee have no mouth, but it was clear from Domo's eyes that he was smiling. "Then we have a place to begin! …That is, if you are ready?"

Zona nodded.

"Good! You are one that understands the power of meditation, though it is not a power that comes naturally to your species. It is, I think, an easier method of learning to call one's Ember." He became a Charmander, and seemed about to continue when he noticed Zona's look of surprise.

"You… can become a Charmander? I thought that n-none… That is, m-my parents said that there were n-none… in-n Ambera."

"They are rare," acknowledged the Charmander-Domo. "But they are certainly not extinct. Have you heard of Team Remorse? Their leader, Scythe, returned late last night, and brought with him a Bulbasaur and a Charmander. Ursa was taking them on a tour… I think you just missed them, to be honest."

Zona hung his head, bemoaning his ill timing. It would have been an honor to meet a creature as rare as a Charmander…

"No fear, young one, they are to join the Resistance as well. I think it is that you will see them soon enough. Now, back to training! Lie down, close your eyes, and try to feel your Ember…"

**Three Hours Later** **– Gold Division Cafeteria**

"Here you are!" The Bellossom, with the unswayable joy of its species, offered up a plate, which Zona took into his mouth. "Eat up, eat up! There's plenty to go around!"

Plenty to go around, eh? Zona recalled the Jolteon's words from early that morning—that the orphans would be an "unfair strain…" Perhaps that was true, of course, and the Bellossom were simply being generous, or perhaps they simply couldn't stand the idea of untrained children running about the Base, accomplishing nothing…

"Hey, hey! Vulpix!" He had been looking for a place to sit, but everything near him was crowded, it seemed. There were fewer people here than there had been at breakfast—presumably, the others were out on all-day missions—but it would be a long walk to the first empty section, and Zona was already tired. Hearing this voice, thus, caught his attention. It had issued from his left; careful not to spill what was on his plate, he looked and saw a Shinx bouncing in place, looking at him. "Hey! You can sit here! Come on!"

Despite himself, Zona stood and stared. He had thought Ray enthusiastic, but the Raichu had nothing on this Pokémon. Not wanting to disappoint him (and, honestly, feeling this was better than walking all that way), he walked over to where the Shinx was sitting and set his plate down.

"Hey! Ray told me about you," continued the Shinx instantly. "You're Zona, aren't you? I'm Leo. I'm on Team Stripes, too! I was the newest member, until you came along. Well, maybe I still am, since you haven't joined yet. But Ray's been talking with Captain Lionel, and so maybe pretty soon you'll be the newest member!"

"…A-already?" Somehow the thought of being put straight on a team terrified him. "I… I m-m-mean, isn't there s-some kind of t-test or something?"

"Well, there's the Creed," Leo acknowledged. "I'm still having a little trouble with it too. But Gate's been nice about it so far. He's only offered stanzas that I know. But that's something you do after you join, I think. At least, I didn't have to do it before _I _joined. I think it's kinda boring, though. I know a bunch of better songs. Want to hear one?"

There was a pause, which seemed, so far, to be a rare occurrence when Leo spoke. Zona's brain caught up with the Shinx's rapid, tangent-following speech and realized he was waiting for a response.

"U-um… N-not right n-now, thanks…"

Leo continued to talk as they ate, informing Zona of everything he'd done since he'd joined the Resistance—all the friends he'd made, the fun he'd been having. Not once, Zona noted, did he discuss what had happened before he joined, nor did he presume to ask Zona anything about his experiences before arriving at the Base. Though it was obvious even to Zona that the Shinx was older than he, he couldn't help but look at Leo as an excited child who didn't quite realize the gravity of what he had chosen to do. Leave it to the youngest, he thought—the one with the most curiosity—to be the first not to inquire anything about me.

"…and Ray's been really good so far, 'cause he's trained me when Domo was busy. He's really strong! Like, like, I can throw static around, but I've seen him actually call Thunder from the sky!"

"That sounds…p-painful…"

"It would be, I guess, if you aren't an Electr—Ekel—Elet… Um." He took it slowly, sounding it out syllable by syllable, "E-lec-tric-type like me and Ray. It's an interesting feeling, to have elec—etel—to have that stuff flow through you, it tingles. What does it feel like when you use your fire?"

If this question had been asked four hours earlier, Zona would not have had an answer. However, Domo had worked patiently with him, starting with meditation, leading to the calming of the spirit, the ability to feel his Ember pulsing within him. He had had Zona experiment with emotions—the fear, the anger, the excitement—that he would feel in a Mystery Dungeon, which would be easier to use than peace, which he would most certainly _not_ be feeling. He had managed, at last, to produce a flame—a basic manipulation of his fire, appropriately a move _called _Ember.

He noted the Shinx's use of "your fire," compared to his neutral description of electricity. Did their power not come from within like his? He filed it away as a question to ask Domo.

"It…it f-feels like…" He paused. "I'm s-sorry, I'm n-n-not very good with w-words… U-um… warm," he finished, rather more lamely than he'd hoped.

"Like, hot-warm? Or just nice-warm? 'Cause it really would be painful to hurt yourself when you attack! I know, 'cause when I first started learning how to use my Spark, I hurt myself all the time…"

Despite—or, perhaps, he reflected later, _due to_—their clashing personalities, Zona couldn't help but feel himself bonding a little with Leo. It wasn't the same as Ray, whom he had bonded to initially out of necessity; with Leo, somehow, he felt a kind of camaraderie, something they shared. Ray would still be his first friend, but Leo, in time, would grow to become his best.


	2. Chapter 2

As a disclaimer: Pokémon and all related official material do not belong to me; further, all material, including but not limited to characters and locations, and the verses of the Resistance Creed, pulled from _Silver Resistance_ belong to ScytheRider. Zonaphèras, Leppa Town, and other material not owned by him or by Nintendo et al, belong to me.

As always, I urge you to read the main story (ScytheRider's _Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Silver Resistance_) before reading this one.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

**Gold Division – Team Stripes' Quarters**

"Captain! Captain! Hey, Captain, I brought Zona back with me!"

Compared to the way he'd seen them that morning, Team Stripes' quarters were crowded. This seemed to be some kind of meeting room—it certainly wasn't the same room he'd met Ray in earlier, and Zona had seen five other such rooms on the way to the back of the hall, which was where they currently were. There had to be nearly thirty Pokémon all told—all of which seemed to have heard of him, while he had no idea who they were. They certainly seemed to be taking pains to make him feel welcome.

At least, the cadets were. Zona had been in the room all of five minutes, being introduced around by a still-bouncy Leo, when a long, silver-and-black Pokémon with sharp-looking claws and piercing blue eyes entered the room. It was to this Pokémon that Leo had spoken.

Zona had only to glance at its eyes to know that it was a strong leader; without a word, he stepped forward and sat before it.

"So, you're Zona." The voice was male. "Huh. A Vulpix, indeed… You're scared, aren't you?"

"Y-y-yes, s-sir."

"Good," said the other dismissively. "I'd be worried if you weren't. So I hear you want to be on my team…?" This, then, had to be Lionel—the Linoone, one of the Captains of Team Stripes.

"Y-yes, s-sir."

"Stop stuttering, boy! It's unbecoming of you."

"I c-c-can't help it, s-sir. It's n-n-not because I'm n-nervous…n-not entirely, a-anyway. I…For a-a long…I m-mean, I've a-always s-stuttered."

"Be gentle on him, Lionel," said another Pokémon, a female, who had come in behind the Captain. This Pokémon looked comical, but in a refined way, with purple-and-cream fur, stubby forepaws with no digits, large, expressive eyes, and what looked like two hands on the ends of her twin tails. Anise—the Ambipom. "You know it can't be easy for him."

"Life isn't gentle. I didn't coddle _you_, did I, cadets?"

"No, Captain," was the immediate reply from Team Stripes, with an extra "Nope!" added by Leo for emphasis.

"Well, then," said Lionel, as if this solved the problem. "I suppose we could get you signed up today, have you spend the rest of the day getting the Creed into your head…"

"Uh, Captain," began Ray uncertainly. "What, uh, what we were talking about…"

Lionel's eyes flicked past Zona and to the Raichu, but only momentarily.

"Right," he said. "Ray's put in a good word for you, Zona. Why, I don't know—he's just a friendly creature, I guess. I know he's got high standards, and I trust him as much as I can trust a cadet. He wants you to go on the mission tomorrow."

"Wh-what?" he stammered, shocked. The echoed cries from behind him spoke of the rest of Team Stripes' confusion.

"B-but sir!" one daring soul began. "When we joined, we didn't get to go on a mission for…"

"The mission to Blackriver City?" Anise seemed shocked. "Lionel, you can't be considering… he's not more than a child…"

"Age doesn't matter," Lionel said stolidly. "Look at Leo." At the mention of his name, Zona heard the little Shinx inhale sharply. "He could probably handle the mission, if he hadn't already been signed up to go with you on that mission to Sitrus City…"

"Leo's had practice!"

"But Zona," said Lionel slowly, "is a Vulpix."

Anise did not contradict him on that point. Zona's focus—and, indeed, the focus of the entire assembled team—was on Lionel.

"You can't deny my worries aren't at least somewhat well-founded," said the Ambipom after a long silence.

"No, I can't," grunted the Linoone. "But don't think I've made up my mind on the matter either, Anise. Zona," he added, and the Vulpix stood to what he hoped was a reasonable impression of attention. "Come with me. Got to go visit Jay up in records, get you signed up."

"Can I come with?" Leo and Ray asked simultaneously, the former with excitement in his voice and the latter with uncharacteristic (or so it seemed to Zona) tension.

"No." Lionel rebuffed them both. "The both of you are going out on missions tomorrow. Ray, it's your turn to pack the bags. Leo, Anise is going to take you up to Kecleon's shop so you can gather what you need."

"Yes, sir," they replied; this time, both voices were sullen, though Leo's far less so than Ray's. Zona cast a nervous glance at both of them before following Lionel from the room.

The Captain was not the type of Pokémon to spare words, it seemed. Nor, as was characteristic of his species, was he inclined to be patient: Zona nearly had to run to keep up with the evolved Pokémon's rapid pace down the straight halls of the base. It was just as well, thus, that he didn't go out for conversation.

By the time they reached the first staircase, he was winded. Lionel slowed to a stop to negotiate the turn, and noticed.

"…No endurance. Typical. Come on, then, boy, we'll take the elevator."

"S…s-sorry, sir," wheezed Zona, and followed the Captain again as he set off, at a somewhat slower pace, down the hall.

* * *

**Gold Division – Creed Chamber**

The room looked different from the rest of the base. While the rest of the complex had been hewn out of brownish stone and earth, this one room appeared to have been carved from marble, which was cold on Zona's paws as the newest member of Team Stripes entered the room. The walls were the same color, but had a different, rougher texture—as though coated with the finest sand.

"I have high expectations for you," said Lionel from behind him. "I do for every Pokémon on my team. But I expect a lot more from you, because Ray went out of his way to get you on the mission tomorrow. I trust his judgment, and I trust his standards—which, if anything, are higher than mine."

"…This r-room, sir?"

"Look to the front of the room."

Zona already had, and had frozen in surprise. Crouched by the far left (from the door) corner were three Pokémon—a Scyther, a Bulbasaur, and a…

"Charmander," he breathed. This was the Charmander that Domo had mentioned having arrived that morning. The Scyther had to be Scythe…

"Ignore them," barked Lionel. "See, carved into the wall, there: those lines of text. Those comprise the Resistance Creed, which you will need to know to get back into the base. Since those Pokémon are busy at the beginning, I want you to go to the fourth tablet from the right end—memorize that one, all the way to the end, and I will let you go on the mission tomorrow, no questions asked."

"B-but sir…?"

"Get to it, cadet. I'll return in four hours to see what you've learned. And if I find out you've been wasting your time talking to those other Pokémon…"

Zona knew better than to ask him to finish the sentence. He was dying to talk to this Charmander… but the Captain was _his_ Captain now, and had every right to make his world a living Distortion World.

"…Yes, s-sir." He counted the number of tablets, reaching eleven—and the one that the Charmander stood by had to make twelve, though he couldn't see it. That meant that tablets nine through twelve were due to be imprinted on his mind. He walked over to the tablet that the Captain had told him to start at and stared at it, feeling more than a little daunted.

He opened his mouth—perhaps reciting it aloud would make it easier—only to be distracted by the sound of the Bulbasaur over by the first tablet.

"Can we go yet?" His voice was strained, though it sounded as though he were taking pains to not show it. "We'll practice this more later… The words are all getting mixed up in my head now…"

"Fine," said the Scyther, and then continued in a voice too low for Zona to hear. They left, then, with only the Scyther seeming to realize he was ever there—the Charmander and the Bulbasaur seemed worn out from their studies.

Zona swallowed nervously, then turned back to his own tablet.

"L-lay low, ebb and flow…"

* * *

Significantly less than four hours later, Zona was back at Team Stripes' quarters (having to stop a Quagsire and, after its advice proved unhelpful, a Poliwhirl, for directions).

The doors to the six bedchambers (one of which he'd met Ray in that morning) were closed save for one; likewise, the door at the end of the hall leading to the team's conference room was also closed. In the one visible room, there was the sound of a Pokémon toiling, two somewhat large bags in front of it and several items scattered around. Though initially the Pokémon was hidden by view from one of the bags, Zona crept up to the door and saw Ray busy poring over two different lists.

"All right," he muttered. "Sitrus' bag is set. Blackriver…lots of Ghost-types… Better pack an extra Pecha Scarf in case we run into one of the Poison-types, too… Leo just _had_ to just drop this stuff all over. Well, he's young, what can you do…"

"R-Ray?" Zona interjected quietly.

The Raichu jumped, dropping the list. "Zona! Wh…whoa, man, don't do that." Zona hung his head. "Hey, don't feel bad. You just gave me a bit of a shock, that's all." He chuckled, as if proud of his little joke. "You're good at sneaking."

"…I had t-t-to b-be. I w-wasn't strong enough… Y-you know, b-back home…"

"Huh? Oh, right. So, I thought you were supposed to be memorizing the Creed?"

"I did," Zona said simply. "A-at least, the verses that Captain Lionel t-told me to." Still standing in the threshold of the room, he looked to his right, to the closed door at the end of the hall. "I…I sh-should tell him I'm done, b-but…" He paused, embarrassed. "…I d-don't know how to w-work the d-doors. Since I walk on f-f-four legs..."

"Oh, that's easy. C'mon, I'll show you," Ray said, getting up and stepping past the Vulpix. Zona followed him down the hall. "The first thing, though, especially when you're going to visit the Captain…" He knocked gently on the door with one brown forepaw.

"Enter," came Lionel's voice from within.

"Good, he's in a good mood," said Ray absently. "Now," he continued, gesturing at the door. "See on the right side, here (it's always right on the outside, left on the inside), there's this indent." He indicated an indent about halfway up the doorframe. "Now, of course, the smaller quadrupeds can't reach that high, so what you do is…" He bent down and, with the back of his forepaw, lifted what seemed an ordinary bit of the door on the lower right-paw corner to reveal a similar indent. "You flip this up here, there's another indent. You can use that one, can't you? The doors are lighter than they look."

"Enter!" barked Lionel again.

"Oh, right," said Ray. "Let's go in. You can practice this later. He doesn't like to be kept waiting." He got back up and used the first indent, opening the door. Lionel was standing at the other end of the conference table; there was some kind of paper in front of him, but Zona could not read it from this angle.

"Zona!" snapped the Captain as soon as he saw him. "What in Dialga's name are you doing back already? I told you four hours, and I meant four hours, get back there and keep memorizing!"

Zona mumbled something, but it came out so jumbled even he couldn't tell what he'd said.

"What was that, boy?"

"I…Th-that is, sir, y-y-you t-told me to m-memorize the l-last f-f-four…"

"What of it?"

"I…I've d-done that, s-sir."

Lionel laughed. "Ha! Ha, hahahah! Yes, and my sister can eat an entire Hippowdon for breakfast."

"I'm not lying, sir."

"It can't be done that fast, boy, not on your own. You _are _lying."

"No, sir, I am not." Each word was pronounced carefully, almost as if each were its own sentence. Ray recognized the look on Zona's face and cleared his throat, sending a meaningful look in the Captain's direction.

Fortunately, the Linoone picked up on it. The smirk slid off of his face, to be replaced with a look with as much gravity as Zona's own. He cleared his throat.

"…Y-yes. Vulpix have a tendency to be scrupulously honest, don't they?" There was the barest hint of nervousness in his voice, which disappeared as he continued. "Well, then, boy, come on in here, recite it to me. Ray, you too—I want you to see if your faith in him was worth it. Shut the door behind you, if you will."

They entered. Ray turned and shut the door behind him, as he had been asked. Now that there were not twenty-odd Pokémon crowding the room, Zona was able to get a good look at it. Not that there was a great deal to see: the room was somewhat large—it had to be, of course, considering the average size of the team—with a somewhat worn oaken table in the middle; this was what Lionel had been standing behind. At the back of the room was another door, also shut. Four torches lined the walls, a cheerful yellow color; though he had been around such rooms the whole day, it only seemed to strike him now how well lit most of the Base was—he may as well have been aboveground, or had windows.

"Well? Get on with it."

Nervous now, Zona didn't even bother with words. He sat where he was and closed his eyes. He listened: there, the sound of Ray breathing, and, even slower, the sound of the Captain. There was the sound of the flames burning, though the crackle echoed oddly in his ears, as though it wasn't real.

He breathed. In, out, in, out… Slowly, in time with his own breathing, he began to bob his head.

He heard the Captain inhale sharply, as though he were about to admonish him, again, to get on with it. Before he could voice it, however, Zona began.

-

_Lay low, ebb and flow_

_Time will tell if all will hold._

_Lay low, all's unknown,_

_Let greed and fear be overthrown._

_-  
_

The notes were all wrong—that is, there were no notes. The words were said in a deadpan tone of voice, as though Zona were still reading from the wall. And yet, there was a pattern to it, an order than Ray had never heard anyone else getting the first time.

-

_Our call is our key, greatest mystery_

_Ancients we call our friends_

_Legends to make amends._

_The waves in the sea, sound and majesty,_

_Prayers to beckon the lord_

_The coming of the sword._

_-  
_

"He found the rhythm…" the Raichu muttered quietly.

-

_Freedom, each their own_

_Mountains, hills, and plains regrown._

_Freedom from the grave_

_This is how the Hero lived_

_-  
_

He could no longer restrain himself. "He found the rhythm." Ray was laughing. "He found the rhythm—on his first try!"

-

_The last is the first, breaking through the curse,_

_Diamonds in the sand_

_Spread throughout the land._

_The last turns to dust, words without the trust_

_Futile is our attempt_

_To turn and reverse the past._

_-  
_

Zona opened his eyes and looked to the Captain.

Unlike Ray, Captain Lionel had not moved nor spoken during Zona's recital. After a moment, the Raichu himself quieted his excited laughter, and silence reigned for a full two minutes.

"Very good," said the Linoone flatly. "…Yes. Very, very good." He seemed to regain his footing. "You've got an exceptional mind, Zona. I've never, ever had a recruit do it so fast."

"…You…d-don't susp-pect me of cheating, s-sir?" Zona had thought he'd have to defend himself from the Captain's analytical questioning.

"If someone gave you the rhythm, they'd have given you the notes." Lionel seemed to chew on his tongue for another few minutes. "Very well. I'm a Pokémon of my word. I said if you could do it, you'd go on the mission tomorrow. So you will." He turned back to the paper he'd been working on before Zona and Ray had entered. "Dismissed."

"Yes, sir," said Ray smartly. He tapped Zona's back, causing the fox Pokémon to look back at him. He gestured that they should leave; Zona nodded, and followed him from the room.

"S-so… D-do you w-want my help?" he asked at Ray shut the door to the conference room. "P-packing, I mean."

"Nah, I'm almost done. Though if you want, you can help me carry the stuff that Leo brought back from the shop that we don't need back to storage."

Zona agreed. There was one more bag in the room Ray had been in—aside from the green one, which Ray said was the bag for Anise's mission to Sitrus City tomorrow, and the red one, which Ray explained was "their" bag—the one they'd be taking to Blackriver City. This third bag was off-white, and sat empty in a corner of the room.

"Leo brought the stuff in that bag. But we didn't need half of it."

"C-Captain Anise went with h-him, didn't s-she? W-why didn't she s-stop him from getting what you d-didn't need?"

"She's paws-on," explained Ray. "Or, I guess, in her case, tails-on. She has everyone learn by doing. Leo's only been on the team for two months, you know; it's a rookie kind of mistake. I'll talk to him about it, he'll learn to prepare better." Zona helped him gather all the lose items strewn about the room; among them were two large orbs, some berries, and a pinkish scarf, which did not look terribly appealing to Zona, but which Ray pointed out was a Pecha Scarf—one that prevented its wearer from being poisoned.

"I was planning on packing it, but you showed up. It's for you—since Blackriver City's known to have a lot of Ghost types in it, and there are some Ghost types that also like to poison other Pokémon."

"Ghost-types," repeated Zona slowly.

"Yeah," responded Ray, who was facing away from him, making sure everything was settled in the bag. "Why, what's the matter?"

Zona said nothing for so long that Ray was afraid that he'd left. He turned, hefting the bag by its strap in one forepaw. Zona had a faraway look in his eyes, one which was rapidly changing to fear.

"…The Watchers," he breathed.

Nothing else needed to be said. Ray put the bag down (improperly balanced, it tilted, spilling some of the items back onto the ground; neither of the Pokémon noticed) and walked over to the Vulpix. Silently, Zona pressed his forehead to Ray's stomach, and Ray put his forepaws as well as he could around Zona's neck in what he hoped was a comforting embrace.

"…I…am a-afraid…"

"I know," said Ray. "I know."

* * *

**Eight Months Prior – Leppa Town – Zona's House**

"Father?" Zona asked one night as his father washed him down after dinner. "I have…been staying up past the time I am supposed to."

"You should not. Your mother and I have a reason for asking you to go to bed when we do." His father turned away, tails flicking irritably. "But I am glad you have admitted it."

"I have seen…things, Father. In the dark. Even on cloudless nights, I cannot see the stars—there are things, black things that blot out the stars…"

"You have seen the Watchers," said his father, and said no more on the subject.

On another night, when his mother was doing the same duty, and his father had gone out to do something or other, quickly, before the light faded, he asked, "Mother, what are the Watchers?"

"Servants of the Master," she replied smoothly. "They watch over all of Ambera in the darkness, to make sure little children have stayed in their place, and that there is no one moving in the dead of night—things are dangerous at night."

"If they simply help children return to their homes, why is it that you always have me inside well before the sunset?"

"Because," his mother responded perhaps too quickly, "I am worried for you. It is difficult to see things in the dark. I wouldn't want to lose you."

"But wouldn't the Watchers bring me back…?"

"Enough questions!" she said forcefully, and said no more.

And again, the next night,

"Father, what are the Watchers?"

"…I should not tell you," his father sighed. "But you have already asked your mother. She said she had sugar-coated it. I do not believe in lessening the truth of things." He walked to the window of that room of their home, where the sun was just visible over the horizon. "The Watchers are beings, perhaps and perhaps not created by the Master, that fly over the whole of the Ambera region in the night. They are unable to enter any shelter, however rudimentary; but any Pokémon they find outside of a shelter they…absorb. Consume. Perhaps destroy. Any Pokémon taken by the Watchers will not be seen again." The Ninetales turned back to his son, an imperative gleam in his eye. "With this in mind, I reinforce the order that you _must be home well before sunset._ Now you know why."

"…Yes, Father."

However, he was not afraid then. Afflicted with the natural curiosity and mischievousness of his species, Zona wanted to know more about these entities that his parents disagreed upon. For the life of himself, however, he could not think of a way to stay out without his parents knowing.

Eventually, however, that was taken care of for him…

Wearily, Zona stumbled out of the Mystery Dungeon, numb with exhaustion and hunger. It had been harder that day; the wild Pokémon seemed more alert, harder to sneak past, and the unseen fruit trees that he had so depended on for other trips through the Dungeon had offered nothing to him this time.

He lay on the outskirts of the Dungeon for what felt like a long time, but could have been only minutes. He was alone: he could tell that Eli had gone, because he hadn't been picked up bodily and thrown back into the dungeon, as had happened earlier.

Still lying prone on the ground, not moving except for his shallow breaths, he cursed the Machop under his breath. They had never seen eye to eye—the quick, clever little fox and the slow, literal-minded Superpower Pokémon. Zona hadn't ever intended for them to become enemies, but Eli had recognized his weakness, and had become a bully, taking every opportunity to make Zona's life miserable. So far, it had worked.

What time was it? Zona forced himself to his paws, and looked up at the sky. He gasped—it was nearly dark.

He needed to get home. He would probably be in trouble as it was…

Though he was so weak he couldn't feel his own limbs, Zona forced himself to take step by shaky step forward, back toward the town. Light was fading fast, but he had been forced to take this path so often he could have done it with his eyes closed. For all practical purposes, he was, his mind entirely focused on placing paw in front of paw.

_Step, step, step…Got to get…home… Step, step, step._

He nearly made it. After nearly twenty minutes of agonizingly slow staggering through the outskirts of town, he could see his house. The lamps inside had been lit, and he could see…he was so close…the outline of one of his parents' heads in the window.

"Zona!" he thought he heard his father say. He opened his mouth to reply, but his strength was gone: he collapsed to the ground, unable to move.

"_Zona!!_" roared his father.

The last of the light vanished.

Instantly, the world changed. The first star, visible at the upper end of his vision, was blotted out, a single, gaseous, yellow-eyed…thing, taking its place. The darkness spread, until all he was aware of was darkness and the evil glow of the Watchers' eyes.

Zona was terrified.

Dimly—his vision was flickering now—he was aware of a biting cold covering his whole body. Something grabbed him. He felt himself being lifted off the ground.

"_**You infernal shadows, let go of my son! NOW!!"**_

There was light, and heat. He was dropped back to the ground. Then there was darkness.

Consciously, he had been largely unaware of the event. But his subconscious had caught it all in excruciating detail, and as he lay still and slept, he kept reliving it over and over, terrified and lost.

When he woke, days later, his father was standing over him. His expression was unreadable—was he angry? Relieved? Zona could not tell. When he spoke, however, it was clear that he was barely suppressing his temper.

"Explain. _What in Ambera caused you to stay out that late?_" Despite himself, despite the fact that he knew silence would only make his father angrier, Zona said nothing. "Zonaphèras." His full name. He cringed. "Speak."

When he opened his mouth, ready now to attempt to give a full account of what had happened, to finally talk about Eli and his abuse, only one word came out, quiet and broken to pieces by the stutter that would follow him from that day forward, a product of the unrelenting fear raging through his mind.

"…C-c-cold…"

* * *

**Present Day – Gold Division – Team Stripes' Quarters**

How long they stayed like that, Zona did not know. But when at last the fear began to recede, the two torches on either side of the room had turned red.

"Evening," said Ray quietly.

Zona pulled himself away from the Raichu. Breathing heavily, he turned away. Silence continued for another few minutes, until Ray spoke again.

"Zona… You know what you just did?" Ray waited, but Zona seemed still enough he could have been hewn from stone. "You showed that deep beneath that mature image you were trying so hard to carry this morning, you're a Pokémon just like the rest of us. You _showed trust._"

"…Trust." The word still sounded foreign to him. "…I… s-still don't…"

"I don't want to preach at you again. It didn't work last time. So…I won't. I think it's something you have to learn to understand on your own." The Raichu turned, repacked the white bag, and hoisted it again. "Stay here and think about it. I'll take this stuff down to Storage. We can go get dinner when I come back, if you're hungry."

He left. Zona watched him go, sliding the door closed behind him for practice. He lay in the center of the room, bathed in the reddish light of the evening flames, and thought for a long time.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I'm not dead, believe it or not. I've simply had…to put it simply…lots and lots of computer issues. But they're all resolved now, and I've finally gotten myself together enough to finish this chapter.

…For those of you that care, expect the next chapter of _A Fear of Change_ within a few days. There is one rough spot which still needs smoothing over, but once that's done that story will also receive its first update for the decade.

…On that note, happy New Year.

Pokémon and all related official material belong to Nintendo and GameFreak, and the concept of the Mystery Dungeon games belongs to…whomever it belongs to. Also, I lay claim to only a few Pokémon in this story (Zona, Lionel, Anise, Cirrus, Arty, Eli [and his posse]). Most other characters and very nearly all the locations belong to ScytheRider.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

"Up! Up! It's mission time!"

"Yeah! Yay! Time for a mission!"

Was it the duty of Electric-types, Zona wondered, to wake everyone in the Base up in the morning? First Voltali, now Ray and Leo…

"C'mon, Zona, up and at 'em!"

_Whoof!_ went the flames on the wall. Knowing that trying to sleep now would likely only earn him a shock from Ray, Zona opened his eyes, rubbing his forepaws across his nose. He sneezed; a small tongue of orange flame spurted in front of him, missing Leo by less than an inch.

"Hey!" mumbled the Shinx, sounding hurt. "I didn't mean to make you angry. No need to set me on fire."

"N-no, I…" Zona started, but the sad look Leo sent his direction forced the rest of the words down his throat.

The three of them were the only ones in the room. Taka had been sleeping in the room with them, but she had already left, as the door was open. They stepped out into Stripes' main hall, and Zona noticed that all the rest of the bedchambers' doors were shut: apparently, the rest of the team hadn't decided to wake up yet. Taka was standing halfway down on the other side of the hall, leaning against the wall. Bouncing briskly on his long rear paws and tail lashing excitedly behind him, Ray proceeded to go to each one, knocking and shouting that it was time to wake up. Zona and Leo stayed where they were.

"S-so," Zona began hesitantly, "y-you're g-going on a m-mission, too?"

"Yeah," said Leo sulkily, still off-put by Zona nearly burning him. "It's an escort mission. At least we'll start in Sitrus City, which is a pretty cool place. Not as cool as your mission."

"Wh-what is it? I kn-know it's in a place called…Bl-Blackriver C-City, but no one's told m-me anything otherwise…"

"Well, you actually get to go into a Mystery Dungeon. That's all I know about it, really, you'd have to ask Ray for more." A dreamy tone filled the Shinx's voice as he continued. "Dungeon-crawling, on your first mission…and this time yesterday, you weren't even on the Team! You know, Zona, you're awfully lucky!"

He beamed. It looked so sincere that Zona felt that the Shinx had already forgotten his transgression, accidental or not.

The door to the conference room slid open, and Lionel and Anise emerged.

"Team Stripes!" roared the Captain. The other cadets, who had slowly been emerging from their rooms at Ray's insistence, instead began to pour into the hall like a river bursting through a Bidoof's dam. "In order!"

"O-o-order…?" asked Zona, but all of the other cadets began to move about the hallway; the colors of the Pokémon were so varied that for a moment Zona nearly had a headache. Just as suddenly as the motion began, it stopped, and the trainees were all standing in neat rows and at attention. At a loss, Zona looked for Ray or Leo, but could see neither.

"Cadets Leo and Ray!" barked Lionel. Two cries of "Yes, sir?" emerged from the ensemble. "For four-fifths of his stay Cadet Zona has been under one or both of your care. Would either of you, therefore, like to explain to me why is it he knows nothing of our most basic of procedures!?" Neither had anything to say to this. "Cadet Cirrus!"

"Yes, sir," responded a Squirtle in the second row. "Every morning, dawn if part of the Team has a mission, full-light otherwise, we line up in the main hallway, sir, in rows of six and columns of no more than five, team size permitting. We are lined up in rows according to our names listed in alphabetical order of Unown-script, sir."

"Un…Unown-s-s-script?" muttered Zona. "B-but, sir…"

"Don't you know it, Cadet? I'd have thought a Vulpix, of all species…"

"I…I kn-know the l-letters, s-sir, I just…" He hung his head, something close to resentment seeming to fill his eyes. "I d-didn't know…they had an order…"

"It's easy, dear," said Anise, speaking for the first time. She stood on one tail (not full height—the ceiling was too low) and put the other one over Lionel; transferring her weight, she was then, easily, standing on the Captain's other side, closer to Zona. "Another time, I'll have the chance to teach you. But for you, it's easy. You're 'zee, oh,' aren't you? In your name?"

"Y-yes, m-ma'am."

"Then… Can someone tell me where Zona belongs?"

The same Squirtle raised her claw.

"Yes, Cirrus?"

"He would be in the back, Miss Anise. Next to Zeven."

"Very good, Cirrus. Yes, Zona, like she said." One orange-tipped "finger" pointed him in the right direction.

He went, glancing at the Squirtle with a look of thanks, and she winked at him in response.

"And Zona makes twenty-eight!" exclaimed Anise as soon as he found his place next to the Sneasel from yesterday. "They're all awake and ready, as usual. Good job, cadets."

"You've done better," muttered the Captain grouchily.

"He says that every morning," murmured Zeven from the corner of his mouth. "It's to motivate us to do better the next day."

"Today's an unusual day," began Lionel briskly. From here, Zona could not see him, but the tight space of the hallway, filled with Team Stripes, didn't put him any more at ease. "Today, both of us—Anise and I—are going to be gone, both of us leading separate missions, her an escort mission from Sitrus City and I a retrieval mission in Blackriver City. Intelligence has limited the size of any team to five Pokémon, and both teams have now been filled, and as such there will be some of you remaining here. Alone. Unsupervised." There was a pause here. No one moved. Up at the front, Zona imagined that the Captain was leaning forward and trying to stare into each cadet's eyes. "I expect each and every one of you to be on your best behavior. If I hear even the slightest word against any one of you…"

"The Captain never finishes his threats," added Zeven.

"But!" said Anise brightly, waving her tails so high that Zona could see them from the back of the room. "If I hear that any of you have been exceptionally helpful, I'll be sure to arrange an award!"

"Anise always keeps her promises," advised the Sneasel.

"Those of you going on the mission to Sitrus City, stand on Anise's side of the room." Leo, an Eevee, Cirrus, and a Meowth wormed their way from the crowd and settled on the left. "And those of you going with me, stand on the other side."

It took Zona a moment to realize, even now, that he was included in the group. Zeven had already pushed his way past him, and Ray and a Snubbull followed him to the right side of the room. After a moment, Zona's mind caught up, and he went with them.

"The rest of you," said the Captain, leaving the rest of the sentence unsaid as per usual.

"Yes, Captain!" the cadets replied.

* * *

Anise's mission began later in the day, and as such the other team of five did not accompany Zona's to the base's exit. There were, however, several other teams that had decided to leave at the same time. Among them…

"Hey, Zona_ferior,_ you're still here?"

He stopped. The other four, the Captain included, turned to look at the source of the voice. Zona had no need.

"Eli," he said flatly.

The Machop smirked, surrounded by his own companions. Unlike Zona, who had joined Stripes on his own, Eli had joined his team with most of the other refugees who had decided to fight with the Resistance. Most of his companions, thus, were not strange to Zona either. The Meditite that had spoken with him yesterday was there, as well as a Stunky. The only two new faces were a Zangoose and a Kriketune that was obviously the captain of whatever team they were on.

"I'm not going to like you, am I?" Zona heard the Captain murmur.

"There's got to be some kinda mistake," continued Eli glibly. "Who'd send you out on a mission already?"

"Who'd sent you out on one at all?" chirped the Meditite. "After all, you're such a coward…"

"I bet it's something really stupid."

"Ignore them, Zona," Ray snapped. Zona didn't feel motivated enough to tell him that that was what he normally did. "I wonder, what kind of mission are _you_ going out on already?" the Raichu challenged, stepping toward the other.

"Cadet," said Lionel calmly. Ray backed down. Despite himself, Zona felt a little grateful that the Raichu had stood up for him. "We go."

Team Stripes began moving again. Zona did not spare so much as a glance back at the other team.

"Yeah! That's right, run away! I could trash you!" Eli jeered.

"You," started Ray.

"…really ought to stand up for yourself more, Zona," he finished an indefinite amount of time later. Zona paused, realizing something was wrong. His mind felt tingly and somehow flattened, as though it had just been compressed. On top of that, they had gone from being in a cave to being in a forest in what appeared to be no time at all.

"Memory-wipe," grunted the Captain, obviously anticipating this. "Some of the exits have 'em. Wipes out the last half-hour or so of your memory, so you don't know exactly where the exit is at."

"We go south," said the Snubbull, who had hitherto been silent. After a moment to reorient themselves, the Team did so.

Presently they emerged from the forest. The sun had not completely risen yet, and fog rolled across the landscape in twisting, formless masses. When they touched Zona, it felt as though he were being poked lightly with several dull needles, all over his body. He sneezed, and his Ember slipped out of his muzzle. The air around the team cleared.

Ray chuckled, and Zona thought he saw a smile on Zeven's face. He wished he felt as relaxed as they seemed to be: he was shivering from more fear than actual cold, and his stomach was roiling, threatening to lose the half-Apple he'd eaten for breakfast that morning. He realized that he had not so much been ignoring Eli has he had been attempting to remain calm. The thought of even a single Ghost type terrified him, filled his mind with numbing cold and the image of soulless, sickly yellow eyes.

"I don't like liars on my team, boy," the Captain's voice intruded on his thoughts. He shook his head, looking up.

"L-liars….? B-but, s-sir…?"

"Lying isn't always verbal, Cadet."

"You've been padding along with that blank look on your face since we got out here," Zeven told him. "You're trying to make us all think you aren't nervous."

"Ar," said the Snubbull, apparently in agreement.

"But anyone who's not nervous on their first mission is either more of a bonehead than that idiot Machop we saw at the gate, or they're lying." The Captain looked back at him. "And you're not a bonehead, Zona, you've already proven that."

"You'll be fine, though," said Ray reassuringly, carrying the bag with all of their supplies. "You've got your Ember now. And you're not alone."

"…That Machop knew you," observed Zeven after a few minutes of silence.

"His n-name… Eli."

"Eli," repeated Zeven in a way that suggested he was committing the name to memory. "Fine. He knew you. He lived…in the same place you did?" he asked, choosing his words carefully, apparently remembering his blunder the day before. "And he's always walked all over you like that?"

"…Y-yes. I c-can't f-fight him, he'd just…th-throw me around, I…"

"If there's one thing I hate, aside from the Master himself, it's a bully." There was a bitterness in the Sneasel's voice. "Someone who picks on someone else for no good reason. I won't stand for it. You don't deserve that, Zona."

"Senior Cadet," snapped Lionel. "As long as you're on my team, you won't lay a claw on that Machop." He paused, grinning slightly, as anger blazed across Zeven's face. "On that note, you are more than eligible to graduate from my team."

For a moment, Zona was confused, but then things settled into place. _As long as you're on my team…_ But he wasn't going to be on the team much longer, was he?

"You...are considering...?" asked the Sneasel hesitantly.

"Talking to Vazidor is your own business, Senior Cadet. But when you get approved, sure, you're off the team."

Zeven said nothing in response, but as they continued on, Zona saw a mischievous grin on his face.

* * *

The sun was up now, and the sky was clear. Team Stripes continued to pad through the dusty, featureless landscape. For some time now there had been silence, broken occasionally by Ray grunting with the effort of carrying the bag. There was no wind, and while the temperature seemed quite bearable to Zona, Zeven seemed uncomfortable.

"There," grunted the Snubbull, pointing ahead. At the edge of the horizon, the sky was different. It seemed wrong in some unidentifiable way, and as Zona stared at it, trying to figure out what it was, he began to get a headache.

Ray exhaled, seeming a little nervous himself now. "Alright, are you ready, Zona?"

"…N-not really…"

"You'll do fine," he insisted again, though it sounded more forced this time. "I've been here before, and I came out alright. Just remember that you've got teammates. And that you can trust them." He paused. "You know who I met this morning, by the way? Remember, before we left, the Captain sent me downstairs? Well on the way back up, on the elevator, I met Team Peanuts, and Scythe!"

"P-Peanuts…?"

"The Charmander and Bulbasaur. They've got their own team now, Team Peanuts. You didn't read the bulletin last night, did you?"

_Their own team…_ And they kept company with Scythe, the leader of the Team that Ray respected above all else. Zona wondered what made them so special.

"They didn't seem to like their name much." Ray's expression was thoughtful.

"Would you?" Zeven chuckled. "Peanuts… It's amusing. It makes everyone laugh. That's good, everyone needs a good laugh…" He shrugged. "But to them, it must look like we're laughing at them and not with them…" The small talk continued for awhile beyond that, but the Vulpix tuned it out, focused on, and nervous about, the Dungeon they were approaching.

As they approached, the dark cloud became no clearer to Zona. He thought he could see the tops of buildings emerging from the ground now, but his eyes were still drawn to the out-of-focus shadow that hung above them.

"Don't look at the darkness, Cadet," advised the Captain. "It'll give you a headache if you try. It's a product of the particularly nasty space-time distortion hanging over the city. Once we're inside the Dungeon proper it'll make sense."

Blackriver City became more and more defined as they approached. Featureless gray structures that could possibly have been called buildings emerged from the damp, slimy ground, some unidentifiable all-permeating light providing some weak illumination. Less than a block into the city, Zona noticed, everything appeared blurred, as though layered on top of itself and just slightly out of alignment.

"Wh…what is th-that?"

"You can see it, can't you, Cadet?" Lionel asked. "How everything is just out of focus a little ways in? Most Pokémon can't tell without training. That's where the Mystery Dungeon starts."

_Where the Ghosts start. Where the Water-types start._ For this was Black_river_ City—it did not take an astounding leap of logic to realize that there would be Water-types around.

"Stay together," admonished the Captain. "Remember, Team Wingblade said they'd gotten to the second District before they realized the item was gone. We search the first two Districts thoroughly, but we _stay together._ This Dungeon is an unforgiving one."

"Yes, Captain!" said Zeven and Ray.

"Ar," said the Snubbull.

"Cadet Zona?" asked the Captain, though far more gently than Zona had expected.

"…T-t-together. Y-yes, s-sir."

"Then we go." Lionel looked straight ahead. "Team Stripes, move out!"

**Blackriver** **City – ****Sector**** I**

As Lionel had said, the instant they stepped into the Dungeon, the dark cloud above them became clear, and Zona realized that it wasn't a cloud at all. It was night.

"Space-time distortion's nasty here. The city's locked in an endless night, which is what draws so many Ghosts here. Fortunately the Watchers don't take advantage of it." The Captain paused. "Zona… You're a Vulpix."

"Y-yes, s-sir."

"Tell me: Do you feel…like you're being watched?"

"N-no, s-sir… Should I?" The moment he said it he realized it was a stupid question. Fear began to bubble up from inside him again, more intense than before.

"Maybe they haven't noticed us yet, Captain," suggested Ray. "Let's keep walking. Maybe if we do this fast enough they won't notice us."

They moved forward. The ground was damp, but hard, made of some kind of unnatural stone-like substance. There was standing water in some places, which Zona took care to avoid: the moisture that rested everywhere, that permeated the air, was bad enough. Every time he took a breath, the humidity would rush in, and he could feel his Ember flickering under the repeated assault. The air, despite the humidity, was cool; Zeven now seemed completely comfortable, while Zona barely managed to suppress a shiver.

Unlike the Mystery Dungeon near his old home, Blackriver City was a maze not because nature had gone berserk and made many places impassable, but because everything looked the same. As far as he could see, identical, squat, dull-gray structures pushed resolutely out of the ground, at identical intervals. There were doors in these structures, always in the same spot, always leading to an invisible, inky-black interior. Some of the buildings were collapsed, preventing them from taking a particular path; and yet, when they turned to take another, Zona would look behind him as they walked to see the building repair itself or vanish completely into the dark.

Zona's sense of time was completely ruined. With the entire Dungeon cast into an unchanging night and his body's own processes accelerated, it seemed that the world was both standing still and moving too fast.

"Hold," said the Captain, perhaps half an hour into the Dungeon. Everyone froze. Zona was beginning to feel sick from the tension.

The others' attentions—and now Zona's—were all focused on the wild Pokémon in front of them. A Wooper, smaller even than Zona, blue with purple antenna-like protrusions from its head. Despite its size, it provided a threat. Ray's advantage over Water types was trumped by the Wooper's affinity for Ground, and to Zona the tiny Pokémon was twice the threat, since both Earth and Water could smother his Ember.

It growled. Somehow, despite the complete lack of anything civilized in its face, it managed to look cute.

"Huh," said the Captain. "Didn't expect that."

The Wooper shrieked. All of Team Stripes, save for Zona, took a defensive stance.

"Think, boys! There's not a Grass-type among us, Ray and Zona are out, what do you do?"

"Ar!" shouted the Snubbull, and flung himself forward, opening his jaws wide; his breath fumed out, visible, as though he were in extreme cold, and—Zona had to take a second look—ice began to form on the outside of his jaw.

With another snarl, he clamped down, hard, on the Wooper's head. It shrieked again, this time in pain. The damage was not as extreme as it made it sound, however: while Ground was indeed liable to being frozen by Ice, its Water aspect resisted being frozen. Regardless of all of this, the single Ice Fang attack was apparently enough: as the Snubbull let go, it fled, making a sound like weeping.

"Well done, Arty!" cheered Ray.

"Probably the best choice, under the circumstances," acknowledged the Captain, who then turned to Zona. "You weren't even prepared."

"B-b-but s-sir, th-that Pokémon… I c-couldn't h-have…"

"It would have been difficult, but you could have," countered the Captain. "What if you had been on your own? Feral Pokémon are known to chase explorers to the end of the Dungeon if necessary, so you would have had to fight it at some point." He shook his head. "Always be ready, Zona. Even if the odds are against you, you must fight."

* * *

**Blackriver** **City – ****Sector**** II**

They had walked for another hour. At some non-specific point the Dungeon had shimmered around Zona again, and the Captain announced that they had changed "sectors," apparently going farther into the Dungeon. No other wild Pokémon had challenged them, though increasingly as they'd walked Zona felt some peculiar feeling, as though they were being followed. Shadows were dancing at the edge of his vision, and he heard, as though an echo from far away, evil cackling. He knew what it had to mean, that they had been found and the Ghosts were toying with them, but every time he opened his mouth to say something about it to the Captain he felt a terrible chill along his spine, and felt the gaze of the unseen Ghosts turn from mischievous to malevolent. He said nothing.

Team Stripes stopped to eat shortly after entering District II. Zona was given a quarter of an Apple, which he readily consumed.

"It's not much," said Ray, working on his own piece of Apple. "But we're only a training team… We haven't exactly got the money to spare for lots of food…" He shrugged. "By the way, we've got to buy our own stuff because Kecleon…that's the Pokémon who manages the store at the Base…isn't really with the Resistance. He's the kind who'd sell to anyone who paid the right price."

"He h-hasn't b-betrayed you?"

Ray looked surprised. "What? …No, I guess not. Then again, the Master probably wouldn't pay him."

"Ar." Zona jumped, terrified of any sound that came from outside his field of vision. Sense took over after a moment, and he recognized Arty's trademark grunt. He turned around and found the Snubbull blinking dully. "Sorry. Scary, I know." The words were clipped and short: the Snubbull did not seem to put it in for long sentences. His voice was so deadpan, Zona couldn't tell if he was stating fact or making a joke. "Captain wants to know. Ghosts here yet?"

"I d-don't..." he started, feeling the Ghosts creep up behind him. "U-u-um..." He couldn't finish: instead he tried pleading desperately with his eyes, _Yes, yes, they're here, but I don't dare say anything! Help!_

The Snubbull's expression did not change; he simply blinked once or twice, and said "Ar."

Zona heard Ray stand up again as the Snubbull turned and walked back toward the Captain, who had been staring resolutely in the direction Team Stripes had yet to go.

"Hey, Zona, you sure you're okay? You look terrible." He shuddered. "I...guess I can't blame you. I mean, I was only a Pikachu when the Watchers..." He broke off, setting a paw on Zona's back. There was a moment of silence. Zona shuddered. Then Ray yelled, "Captain!"

What happened next happened very quickly, though Zona later was able to recall it in great detail.

Lionel leapt to his paws and screamed an order. Four of the five members of Team Stripes turned outward from Zona and entered a battle stance. Very close to losing his recent lunch, Zona felt his front knees give out and he collapsed forward, paralyzed by fear.

They were angry.

Ray had immediately begun arcing electricity out into the air around them, though the Ghosts--flickering into visible form now, and revealing themselves to be nothing less than a massive dome over the Team--simply scattered, cackling. The Raichu seemed to be struggling to maintain his nerve, the near-panic making all of his bolts ineffective. The other three members seemed more focused, though because the Ghosts remained in the air only Zeven was able to attack them.

"Bloody....phantoms!" he roared as he shot off Ice Shard after Ice Shard. Unlike Ray, Zeven still held his focus, and nearly all of his attacks scored direct hits.

One particularly daring Gengar landed a few feet from the Captain. The two eyed each other for a long moment, and the Captain inhaled. Then they were grappling, the Gengar trying to grab the Linoone and carry him off, while Lionel kept slashing with his dangerous claws. As more and more Ghost Pokémon dropped down to ground level, Arty launched himself at them with his jaw opened wide.

But there were too many, and the Team held a weak link.

As though in a nightmare, Zona felt himself being slowly lifted off of the ground in a massive claw, and he was unable to draw enough breath to scream. Memories of another ice-cold grip filled his mind, and he began to struggle, but this time he knew his father could not save him. The last vestiges of rational thought observed a glint of gold not twenty yards from where they'd been. And then...

"_Zona!"_ screamed Ray: his concentration broken, the Ghosts swarmed him.

What happened after that Zona did not know. All he knew was that he was now muzzle-to-face with a gigantic Haunter. Overloaded with fear and certain this time he was going to die, Zona simply shut down, and the world turned black.

* * *

**Ray**

When he woke up, all he knew was that he hurt. All over. Even his tail was throbbing.

And by Arceus was he hungry...

But he didn't want to move. If he moved he would hurt more. He began to argue silently with himself, what would it be, dying of hunger or facing the pain?

Ray grit his teeth, rolled forward onto his stomach, and... Well, for a moment, he didn't do anything except breathe to ease the pain. He opened his eyes finally, and realized he was surrounded by daylight.

So... He huffed. They'd failed. At least it hadn't been an important mission...

_...Though it would have seemed that way for Zona,_ his mind completed for him. With a grunt that began to edge toward a scream, he pushed himself to his rear paws, and then promptly lost his balance and found himself seated on the dry ground.

"Cadet. No, no, don't stand, you're hurting as it is." The Captain sighed. "We bungled that one. I thought for sure, with a Vulpix along..."

"Where is he, sir?" breathed Ray.

The Linoone padded around into Ray's field of vision, facing off to his right. "Here, Ray, pull yourself up."

"You...hardly seem...winded...sir," complained the Raichu as he found purchase in the Captain's fur and pulled himself to his paws again.

"Not so, Cadet. I'm hurting probably as much as you." A forced grin played across Lionel's face for a moment. "Arty's still out, Zeven's up already and making sure we're far enough from the Dungeon. Zona's behind you, before you ask again, Ray. And he's worse off than you, if that shivering's any indication." Ray turned.

The night before, when Zona had expressed his fear of the Watchers, Ray had thought him terrified. Perhaps he had been. What Zona was now was on the other side of terrified: trembling, crying, eyes wide open and seeing nothing.

"I should never have brought him along," sighed the Captain.

Ray wavered on his paws and then fell forward again. _...This is all my fault..._

* * *

**Gold Division, Team Stripes' Quarters, Two Hours Later**

Ray plodded slowly out into the common hall and slid the door shut behind him. The bag that they had brought with them, empty now, still hung over his forepaw, though this was quickly changed as he hung it up on its hook beside the door to the Captain's chamber. Then he sighed, turned around, and continued his dejected plod toward the exit, ready to head for the cafeteria and finally get some lunch.

Physically, he was fine. Dr. Orde had given him a once-over, a portion of a Sitrus Berry, and sent him on his way. The Berry had worked quickly, and he did not hurt anywhere anymore. Except in his mind.

He still felt guilty. Zona was still in the medical wing, being overseen by Hypno. Calm, now, but bordering on comatose. Unresponsive.

Ray was disgusted with himself. So he hadn't known of Zona's phasmophobia when he'd signed him up for the mission. He had still volunteered him mostly against his will, and now, thanks to his stupid idea...

"Helping other Pokémon is not a bad thing, Ray."

He stopped. That had been Hypno's voice, charismatic and yet calm and relaxing. Sure enough, a yellow, humanoid Pokémon with a collar of thick white fur stepped from the shadows at the end of the hall. In reality, he had not been hidden at all: Ray's own distraction had kept him unseen.

"Help him?" Ray parroted back dully. "I just ended up getting him hurt."

"...I was not referring to this specific case," responded Hypno calmly. "What I am trying to say is that you have a nobleness about you. You know what you want in life: you want to be on Team Remorse. But do you strive for that goal at the exclusion of all else?" Here the Hypnosis Pokémon paused, but Ray said nothing. "No, Ray. Yes, you strive for that goal, you yearn for it with all your heart. But when another Pokémon comes along with another goal, you do not ignore him. You help him. You put aside your own goal for his sake. That is noble."

"...I still got him hurt."

"...Yes," admitted Hypno. "You did." A silver ring on a thread dropped from one of the Pokémon's hands. "That is why I am here. This was a suggestion of Captain Lionel's, and I concur." Hypno raised his hand, and the pendulum began swaying back and forth.

Back and forth... And it seemed that if he looked hard enough, he could learn all there was to learn. The pendulum ate up his attention until there was nothing else.

From far away, Ray heard, "This is for your own good. When I snap my fingers, you will forget about Zona and your guilt until you next return to this room. You will go to the cafeteria and have lunch. You will relax. You will be yourself."

_Snap._

Ray blinked. "Hypno? What're you doing here?"

"...Just...checking up on you." Hypno smiled. "You did fail your mission, after all. Some Pokémon cannot stand the idea."

Ray shrugged. "It wasn't an important mission anyway. Just an armband. Besides, it was Blackriver City. I'm not too torn up about losing there, I kinda expected it." His stomach rumbled. "Say, I was gonna go down to the cafeteria, grab some lunch..."

"Ah... Don't let me detain you, then," said Hypno gently, stepping aside and gesturing toward the exit. "I have...a patient I should go see, in any case."

"Who? Someone I know?"

"Now, now, do not concern yourself with my tasks. You have had enough trouble today." Hypno smiled again. "Go, go. I hope your day is a pleasant one."

Ray smiled himself and walked past the humanshape Pokémon. "Yeah, you, too, Doc."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

They were everywhere.

Ghosts—massive shadows with yellow eyes and gaping maws that threatened to engulf him whole. All he heard was cackling, evil laughter that filled his ears and bounced relentlessly around his skull. Even when he dropped to his knees and pressed his forepaws over his ears, the noise continued.

"Stop!" he'd screamed, and more than once, but that only made it worse. They only got louder, larger. The air only got colder.

So he'd run. He'd run to the only place he knew he would be safe.

Zona ran home.

It was cold—there was no fire burning in the hearth, the torches along the walls were all dark—and it was empty—neither of his parents were there—but it was still home. The Ghosts couldn't get him here. The brownstone walls were thick, and the floor hadn't even the smallest hole or blemish.

But he could still hear them. They were pounding on the door (and when had he shut it? He didn't remember shutting the door) and glaring through the window spaces. Their shadows danced in the gaps.

"_G-g-go a-a-away!"_ he screamed. "_Go away! _P-p-pl-please…"

"Zona."

"No! No!" he cried, pressing his forepaws over his ears again, wrenching his eyes shut, huddled down on the floor and quaking. "I d-don't w-w-w-want to! Leave me al-al-_alone!"_

"Zona."

The voice was calming. It was not dripping with malice or sarcasm, it was not mocking. It was peaceful: it reminded him of the golden light of dawn and of the wind through his fur and of hearing fascinating stories by the light of a fire. As it spoke his name, over and over again, quietly, unassumingly, the mocking cries of the Ghosts became muted and finally silent. The air warmed.

"Zona. Are you listening?"

It was his father's voice.

He opened his eyes. A Ninetales stood serene in front of him, tails curled comfortably back. In the dark, his father seemed to have a glow about him, a rich, golden glow like dawn sunlight. He was just as Zona remembered, before…before…

"But…" he said slowly. "You…"

"Me?" asked Amoscandar in his softest voice.

"Y-y-you're…d-dead…" Zona tried to push himself backwards as the fear came back, and the laughter of the Ghosts, and the cold.

"Dead? Me?" His father sounded incredulous.

"I…s-saw you d-d-die. F-father… You're…" He pushed himself finally to all fours. "Y-you're one of th-them. You're with th-them! You…!"

"Zona, I don't under--"

But he turned around, and shut his father's voice out. The glow vanished. Amos was nothing more than a Ghost himself, trying to get him to lower his defenses, so he could… so he could…

_Consume._ That was the word Father had used that time. He would be consumed. He would disappear. And he couldn't fight it.

You're going to die, Zona, said the Ghosts. You're going to be a nice snack: and that's all you ever were meant to be. A snack for Us when We get hungry. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!

_Is that all? _he wondered. They were probably right, though. He was weak, he stuttered, he didn't stand up for himself, he barely knew how to fight…

Without his family, he was lost, anyway.

Family? he thought he heard a voice somewhere ask. You're worried about your family? But didn't I tell you? The Resistance Team…

Resistance Team? Zona laughed, a bitter, hard sound, and the voice that had spoken fell silent, perhaps with a flinch. The Resistance could burn to ash, for all he cared. Where had they been when Father had died? Where had they been when the village came under the ever-angry gaze and iron will that was the Master?

Where were they now, for that matter? Here he was, trapped in his own home, Ghosts on every side. He was cold, he was miserable, and he was _alone._

Home, Zona? Is that where you are? Has your mind chosen your home as its refuge?

Alone? You're not alone, Zona.

We're here, too. We'll be here, as long as it takes.

Don't listen to them, Zona. They're lying. You _are _alone. All alone. It's just you and Us.

"Sh—shut _up!_"

Zona leapt to his paws and spun wildly, his head jerking around, trying to find the sources of the voices. But he was, indeed, alone.

Relax.

Zona, we're trying to help.

Yeah, Zona, we wantcha to wake up.

You _are_ awake. Ignore them. You are awake, you are alone. Give in, Zona.

"All of you…" Under the unending, oppressive fear, anger started to boil. Who were those others? Why were they there—and where, in fact, were they? And why wouldn't they just… "All of you! Just…_shut up!_"

He stood still then, breathing hard and listening. None of the other voices spoke. And though their cold persisted, even the cackling of the Ghosts outside had faded to silence.

And there was nothing else.

Something was wrong. Something was wrong, and he knew it. It…it didn't make _sense…_

Why was he _here?_

With a rather pathetic _thump!_ Zona collapsed onto his side. For a long time he was still, and it was silent. Finally, he curled himself into as small a shape as he could and began to cry himself to sleep.

* * *

**Gold Division – Medical Ward (Psychotherapy Wing – Room Eight)**

_Whoof!_ The flames turned the color of blood. The small room off of the main hall of the Medical Ward was bathed in the light of evening.

Hypno opened his eyes. Not more than a few feet away, on the bed, Zona, difficult to see against the room's lighting, was sleeping peacefully for the first time. Though, the humanoid Pokémon reasoned sourly, it would not last.

Quick as lightning, Ray was up from his position by the wall and in Hypno's face. Leo was not far behind.

"Well?" asked the Mouse Pokémon.

"I can do…nothing more for him," said Hypno slowly. "Not tonight," he added hastily as a look of panic filled both Electric-types' faces. "I simply cannot enter a mind when there is no mind to enter. Zona needs his rest, too."

"No…mind…to enter?" asked Leo slowly, obviously fighting off a yawn.

"I mean to say…" Hypno considered. "How shall I phrase it? …Ah, yes. Look at Zona's brain as a room, if you will. On the one side of the room you have the conscious Zona, which is the Vulpix you know. On the other side you have the subconscious fears, the phantoms, the Ghosts, if you will. Until now, Zona has…shall we say…owned more of the room."

The Hypnosis Pokémon stood. Ray backpedaled so he could keep eye contact, but Leo seemed barely aware he'd moved. The little Pokémon blinked sleepily.

"Leo, you should sleep…"

"No!" he insisted. "I'll…not yet. I wanna hear what's wrong!"

"As you like." Hypno nodded. "As I said, until now, Zona has owned more of the room. He has been in control. But after such a close encounter with the thing he seems to fear most, his conscious mind has been pushed away by the subconscious fears, and now they are…fighting over the room. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," said Ray with unusual solemnity.

"But fighting takes up energy. Zona has been fighting valiantly, whether he knows it or not, trying to rationalize what has happened. Your voices likely helped, despite some of his outbursts. But fear is a powerful thing, especially a fear that has a reminder of physical pain to back it up." Hypno's eyes narrowed and he focused on Ray.

The Mouse Pokémon swallowed.

"You know what that's like, I am sure."

"…Y-yes, sir."

"He has retreated, in his mind, to a safe place. I believe it to be his home: the one time I managed to break through his inherent defenses, he saw me as his father, before dismissing me as an apparition…a Ghost," Hypno clarified for Leo's benefit, "on the grounds of his father being dead. His mind is rife with confusion and loss—I think, in what he felt was defense, Zona blocked out several memories, including everything that's happened since his father's death... But now Zona and the fear have fought themselves to a standstill, and exhausted all of his energy. The… the room is in disarray, and both sides have decided that a messy room is no room to fight over. So they stop their fighting to help clean up the room…so they can fight over it again. The only part of his mind doing any thinking right now is the part keeping his heart beating and his lungs drawing air. I cannot enter—I cannot even detect—a mind that is not thinking. That is what I mean by there being no mind to enter."

No one spoke for a time. Leo yawned, and, beside them, Zona let out an exhausted sigh.

"It's getting late," said Hypno finally. "…And though I do not like that you are going back into duty so soon after today's incident, Ray, the both of you have a mission tomorrow. Go back to your quarters and sleep."

Ray didn't reply right away: it seemed as though he were trying to come up with an argument. After several seconds, though, he muttered another "Yes, sir…Come on, Leo," he added sullenly, turning around and heading for the Medical Ward's exit. Leo, however, remained where he was.

"I can sleep here," muttered the little Pokémon stubbornly.

"No, little Shinx," said Hypno. "You can't."

Leo growled half-heartedly, and he stared defiantly up at the Hypnosis Pokémon even as he wavered on his paws. "I…'m gonna stay here 'till…till he's better…" His voice trailed away as Hypno leaned down and placed a hand gently on his head.

"Leo," he said quietly.

"…Mi...Mister Hypno?"

"You've got a mission tomorrow. So you need to go back to your quarters, okay? You need to get some sleep so you'll have plenty of energy." His words seem to fill the room—fill the whole world. Leo's eyes began to close. "And when you wake up tomorrow, I don't want you to worry about Zona, alright? Not at all. I'll make him better while you're gone."

"P…pr'mise?"

"I promise," said Hypno as solemnly as he could.

Leo muttered something else, but the yellow Pokémon could not make it out.

"…I think I'll take you back to your quarters instead. Don't want you falling asleep in the hallway, do we?" He chuckled softly as he picked the Shinx up. He walked out of the room, Leo in his arms, and turned to carefully, quietly shut the door.

Just before the door closed, Leo muttered in his sleep. The sound slipped through the open crack and bounced around the room.

"Z'na…"

But if the Vulpix heard it, he gave no sign.

* * *

**Gold Division – Team Stripes' Quarters**

"Ray?"

Taka leapt to her feet as the Mouse Pokémon staggered in, tail dragging behind him.

"By Dialga, Ray, you look like a mess…" she continued, concern glittering in her yellow eyes. Not looking away from the Raichu, she walked around him and shut the door.

"…Been staying with Zona," he muttered hollowly. "Trying to wake him up."

"You…didn't make any progress." The expression on Ray's face was enough of an answer. "…Man, you're certainly worked up over the little guy, aren't you? You didn't even dote on Leo this much."

Ray slumped against the wall furthest from the door, eyes half-closed.

"…We're alike," he said simply. "…I… kinda know what he's going through, with the fear and all… You… remember, don't you, Taka?" He swallowed. "The Watchers…"

"I remember." The Treecko sat next down next to the Raichu, pulling her bulky tail up into her arms. "Zeven saved you… But for days, you wouldn't come out of this room…"

"Besides," continued Ray after a moment, sounding as though he hadn't heard her reply, "he's…been through a lot in the past week. His village, his parents' death, whatever that deal with that Machop was… And on top of all that, a mission that I…"

"Oh, come _on_," snapped Taka before he'd finished. "That's not even a bit like you, Ray! Don't you dare blame this on yourself!"

Ray said nothing, but seemed to be contemplating the lightning bolt at the tip of his tail.

"Besides… It…was only his father that died," Taka muttered slowly. This got no verbal response from the Raichu, but his ears twitched slightly and he looked sideways at her. "I…W-well, Intelligence says so. The newsletter for this evening… You didn't read it. Hang on…"

She stood and dashed out of the room—Ray's eyes remained fixed on her the whole time—and came back in within a few seconds, the newsletter in her left hand. Wordlessly, her massive eyes grave, she handed it off to Ray.

_Missing Survivor of Massacre May Be Instigator_

_After several days of research and action on the part of Team Wingblade, the Gold Division's High Intelligence Office believes the individual responsible for the recent depopulation of Leppa Town has been found._

_Amoscandar, formerly a high-ranking member of Team Faith, had gone to the village after the team's disbandment nine years ago. While he undertook no missions and never returned to the Division to join another team, he had been sending in regular reports of any suspicious activity. It was the failure of one of these reports to arrive that motivated High Intelligence to send the Team that discovered Leppa Town's depopulation in the first place. _

_Not among the list of the dead is Amos' mate, Miranda, also a Ninetales, but not a member of the Resistance. Curiously, she is one of the few to apparently escape the slaughter, the only adult not confirmed dead, and also the only Pokémon unaccounted for. _

_While there is no conclusive evidence, it is a sobering and chilling thought that a wise a creature as Amos could have been so utterly fooled._

_It is hoped that we may find solace in the fact that his son, Zonaphèras, was among the survivors…_

Ray let the paper fall from his paws, and rolled onto his side, eyes shut tight.

"That's…terrible…" he breathed. "Not… not to him, not after all this…

"His mother…was the traitor…?"

Taka stood helplessly, clenching and unclenching her hands and blinking her huge yellow eyes.

"I…feel bad, too," she said. "When he joined, when I didn't know any of the details… I just dismissed him as an annoying kid." She shuddered. "But now…"

The door slid open. With a nervous yelp, Taka turned toward it. Ray didn't move.

Hypno stepped through, Leo sleeping in his arms.

"Ah…" he said quietly. "I am sorry, my dear. I wanted to make sure both Ray and Leo made it back." He stepped forward and then knelt, setting the Shinx down next to Ray, who still lay with his back turned.

"S-sir…" began Taka shakily, but Hypno stood and shushed her.

"I would have neither of you speak of Zona to him. I want him to enjoy his mission tomorrow, and not have his thoughts clouded by worry. That goes for you as well, Raichu," he added sternly.

Ray's ear twitched.

"…Good night to the two of you," whispered Hypno after a second or two, and, bowing, he backed out of the room.

Taka stared after him for a few minutes, a slight frown on her face. Then, not knowing anything else to do, she lay down near Leo, reclining on her tail, and closed her eyes.

Silence prevailed in the room for several minutes; the torches on either side of the small room began to darken.

"Taka…?" said Ray hoarsely.

"Yes?"

"…I've been thinking about what Hypno said. Not just here, back in the Medical Wing… He was worried about me going back on a mission so soon. I didn't think he needed to worry, not at first, but…" The Raichu sighed. "Now… with that news… I think I'm gonna be sick. I can't go to Etcher Ravine tomorrow…"

"Ray…"

"I won't be able to stop thinking about him lying there. I know it." There was a pause. "I don't care what you say, Taka, I invited him on that mission, it's at least partially my fault. I won't be able to focus on anything else 'till he's better. … And… I know you wanted to go on that mission, since you haven't had one in a few days…"

"But, Ray—"

"Go in my place. The Captain will understand if you talk to him."

The silence stretched out again.

"Are you sure?" asked Taka eventually.

Ray's silence spoke for itself.

"Alright…" Taka hesitated. "I guess…'good night' is out of the question, huh?"

Ray grunted. After that there was silence, except for one small gasp from Leo as he dreamed. And to Taka, even though Zona had only spent one night with them, the room seemed unbearably empty.

* * *

**The Nightmare**

It was still night. It always was, here.

The Ghosts were still there.

Somehow, now, he'd figured out how to tune them out. He would pace back and forth, endlessly, in front of the empty, ash-covered fire pit.

He had gone so far as to begin muttering to himself; but, Zona felt, if that kept him sane, if that kept the Ghosts away, then he would mutter for the rest of time.

"…This is wrong, this is wrong… I'm…m-m-missing s-something…"

He'd just reached one of the walls of the room. Mechanically, he spun and began to walk the other day.

"What h-have I f-f-forgotten? F-Father is dead, and M-Mother is…" He blinked. "Wh-where? And h-how did Father…?"

He'd seen him die. He knew that. Had seen the life leave his father's ruby eyes.

But where? How? _Why_?

He had thought, with the voices gone, that he could think more clearly. But it seemed to be getting harder and harder: he felt, when this had started, that he'd known more than he did now.

As if on cue, they came back.

Zona, Zona, why are you still fighting? Just sit down and shut up and everything will be alright. You'll see your mother again…

Mother? He did wonder where she'd gotten off to. And his feet were sore from the pacing, and he was thirsty…

…decided not to go…

He blinked. There—just then. One of the other voices.

…worried about you. The Captain doesn't want to show it, but he's been holed up in his room, too…

The Captain? Who was the Captain?

No one! No one, Zona. A figment of your imagination.

What was _missing?_

I… I feel terrible, Zona.

The voice… Before, when all of them had been overlapping and confusing, he couldn't make sense of any of them, nor feel anything but fear and anger. But now… There were just the two.

They were saying different things. One was lying, one was telling the truth.

None of this would have happened if I hadn't…

Open the door, Zona, your mother is outside… You've got to open the door and let her in…

…And I heard about your mother… That's terrible, Zona.

"M-Mother…"

I… I guess maybe I shouldn't talk about something like that, should I? It's not going to help you get better.

Zona. Open the door.

One was lying, and one telling the truth.

I… I've got to go, Zona. I can't spend the whole day here.

A pause, where neither voice spoke. Then the first continued.

I hope you wake up soon, Zona. I know I feel bad, but Leo… I bet, right now, I bet he's putting on a brave face and trying to show off. But inside… I think he's crushed, too.

"Leo…"

Zona blinked.

_I know a bunch of better songs. Want to hear one?_

"N-not right now, thanks," he muttered to no one.

_It's a funny feeling to have elec—etel—that stuff flow through you. What does it feel like when you use your fire?_

"My…fire…" As if on cue, his stomach began to boil. A strange heat began to work its way through him. For the first time in however long he had been there, there was a faint flicker, the barest hint of a smolder, in the empty hearth.

To Zona, it was hope, and peace, and though he still felt lost and surrounded and cold, that tiny voice, a rejected memory, was a small, golden lifeline that he snatched at and held onto for dear life.

* * *

**Gold Division – Dojo**

"Ray?"

The Raichu looked around, not seeing a sign of the Dojo Master. But then where had his voice come from?

"Up, boy, look up!" Domo's voice (or was it his voice? But it didn't sound like anyone else he knew…) continued.

Ray obliged, and immediately tumbled back with a cry of surprise as a Gligar dove down from the ceiling. With a practiced grace that nevertheless portrayed a hint of uncertainty, Domo landed in the center of the room and Transformed.

The Charmander turned back to his still-startled guest with a smile. "You will forgive me, Ray, yes? I was meditating in the darkness above. I was thinking about being a Charmander, like so. But it is hard to think about moving a body you are not currently inhabiting, yes?"

"I…guess so, sir," said Ray.

"These days… I have not been having many visitors. That is good, but also bad." The Charmander crossed his claws and rolled his head back and forth thoughtfully.

"Why…were you thinking about Charmander, sir? Anything to do with Team Pea…Ember?" He'd finished reading the newsletter this morning, though he'd skipped past any mention of Zona or his mother; there had been a small note at the bottom that Team Peanuts had chosen to change their name, "at the behest of the team leader."

"Yes, indeed! You have met them, then!? A rare sight indeed, that Charmander. Usually they are closer to the south of Ambera, I think. But Char, he does not know much about his own body and fighting, and I promised that I would spend all the time I could in his form, learning his secrets to better instruct him. But I have had no one to fight against: the visitors I have had did not have any desire to test themselves against naught but a Charmander! I cannot test myself."

The Ditto inhaled, and the fire on the tip of his tail grew a tiny bit.

"But sit with me, Ray. I can see trouble in your eyes. We will discuss it; but first, calm yourself, and find the inner Spark, while I awaken my own Ember. Our elements will dance together! But first we will meditate."

"Yes, master." Ray closed his eyes and proceeded to mentally shut down his ears, and reached down into himself.

It was this he needed more than anything: this familiar feeling, the beginning of Domo's rigorous training regimen. Focus, a narrowing of one's own vision so far as to escape one's troubles, even if just for a little while. He breathed.

In the darkness behind his eyelids, lightning danced a glorious dance, lancing back and forth across his vision. The lightning was beauty, and to most Pokémon it was beauty gone in the blink of an eye; but to the Electric type, the energy rose from the ground and fell from the sky with a tangible tingle, and in his imagination the bolts moved in slow motion and in myriad colors.

His static pouches began to grow warm. His own voice—Domo's voice, it had been then—filled his head even though his ears were closed.

"_The Spark is the source of life, the beginning and end of thought. It is speed and power given form and sound, the power that makes your heart beat and your eyes see and your mind think. The Spark is the power of Zapdos' rage, and rises from the land where Raikou steps. Feel it. Understand it. Send it where it would serve you best."_

Ray opened his eyes in time to see the Charmander do the same.

"Come!"

Ray leapt to his paws and spun so fast his tail whistled through the air: but the Charmander was no longer in the same spot, having leapt back with almost supernatural speed.

Both Pokémon dropped onto all fours; Ray's tail was curling back on itself in agitation, while the Charmander's flame swung back and forth almost hypnotically.

"I see," started Domo, before surging forward suddenly, swinging his claw back for a furious Scratch that Ray sidestepped, "that you have not lost your touch!

"But tell me!" he continued, spinning on one paw to face the Raichu again. "Were you not supposed to go to Etcher Ravine today? Until you were assigned to Blackriver City, you spoke of nothing else."

The Charmander inhaled.

"I couldn't go, sir," said Ray quietly.

Fire shot out of Domo's jaw as he opened it: once again, Ray leapt to the side, and this time unleashed a Thundershock in retaliation. The Charmander didn't bother to dodge, and took the attack with a grimace.

"Injured?"

"No, sir." Both Pokémon flung themselves forward and began to grapple with each other. "It's just that… Zona…"

Moving rather more like a Fighting-type than a Fire, the Charmander grabbed Ray's left forepaw with both claws and, wrenching himself violently clockwise, pulled the Raichu to the ground, and then leapt away.

"Yes?" said Domo politely, as though they were still seated and calm.

Ray muttered unintelligibly into the floor.

"Speak up, dear boy."

Ray braced himself on his forepaws and made as though he were about to push himself up: but the broad surface of his tail whistled through the air again and smashed Domo across the face; this time, it was he who fell to the ground.

"He's afraid of the Watchers, sir," said Ray flatly, pushing himself back onto all fours. "Like I used to be, but worse."

The Charmander muttered something about "used to be" before assuming his own combat stance again.

"I see. And you took him to that cursed city." The Charmander's eyes radiated disapproval.

"Where we failed the mission, sir. And now he's comatose in the Medical Wing…"

"Yes," said Domo. "I heard."

Lightning lanced from Ray's static pouches again, but the Charmander was already moving, dashing to the side and then rushing forward, claw drawn back again. Ray flinched.

White-hot lines of pain erupted down his muzzle, and he stepped backward. Domo continued to rain Scratches down upon him without giving him time to retaliate.

"And so…" _Scratch_, "how do you…" _Scratch,_ "feel now!?"

_Fwoofh-thwack!_

Domo had used the same attack Ray had, spinning and bringing his tail, fire and all, up to Ray's cheek. The Raichu was knocked to the ground with a cry, his right static pouch singed and stinging. He rolled several feet, finally coming to rest muzzle-up and dizzy.

"I hurt," said Ray finally.

Domo said nothing, but when Ray opened his eyes he could see the Charmander's own blue ones full of pity. The Dojo Master extended a claw to help him up, and Ray took it.

"And yet," he continued after righting himself, "and yet…. I know he'll get better. He's got to."

The Charmander smiled. "That is the Ray I know and—"

Ray flung himself forward and slammed into Domo, knocking the now-winded Charmander to the ground. Ray stood over him, pinning him down with his weight.

"You weren't trying," he complained.

Domo's face betrayed nothing, his maw shut tight. If Ray had been paying attention, however, he'd have seen the Charmander's tail flame grow large with suppressed fire.

Domo's mouth opened with a sound like "_loff!"_ and a plume of thick smoke poured forth, stinging Ray's eyes and leaving him blind. He stumbled backwards, rubbing ineffectually at his eyes, blow after blow raining down on him from every side. Finally he felt Domo's flame connect with his muzzle again—the left side, this time, and once again he was flung to the ground.

Before he'd even stopped rolling, he could feel the Charmander's sharp claws poking at his stomach; with a lurch of disappointment, he realized he'd been outwitted and pinned himself.

"…or so the saying goes, yes?" finished Domo.

Ray opened his still-stinging eyes and once again found them met by the bright blue of the Charmander's. Something there caught his attention, nagging incessantly at the forefront of his mind.

"_Oh boy," he said, smiling. "I bet you're excited! Hope you do well!"_

"_Thanks!" responded the Bulbasaur. "We'll do our best!"_

"_Well, with a name like Team Peanuts, how can you lose?"_

_The Bulbasaur's smile held for a second, brittle as glass, and then faded down into a dejected frown. Out of the corner of his eye, Ray saw the Charmander notice, and, just for an instant, his tail flame flared and a fierce pride shone in his eyes._

Ray blinked. In the moment he'd not been paying attention, Domo had Transformed again, into a Raichu—into _him_—and was extending his paw. Once again, Ray was helped to his rear paws. Distracted, he turned his muzzle away from Domo and toward the door of the Dojo.

"Ray? You are…alright, yes? I did not hurt you too badly?"

"What? …N-no, sir." Ray shook his head. "I'm sorry. Um… Thank you for your help, sir," he finished lamely, bowing. The doppelganger returned the motion.

"Thank you yourself, Ray." Domo reached out and gingerly rubbed soot off of one of Ray's static pouches. "It was good practice for the Charmander! And it is always good to see you, of course. You always give me your best."

Ray smiled and then headed for the door.

"Y-y-you _d-do_ f-feel better, I h-hope?"

He flinched and then froze for a moment, sparks shooting off in surprise, as though he were some immature Pichu. Slowly he turned his head to look back. Zona's wide brown eyes were looking at him curiously.

"You believe, Ray," said Domo with Zona's voice, now without the stutter. "But sometimes even the most stalwart optimist needs reassurance. Keep your belief strong. Zona _will _awake from his nightmares."

Ray didn't respond.

The Dojo Master Transformed again, a Houndour taking the place of the Vulpix. "…That is what _I _think, anyway. Now… it is lunchtime, is it not? May I join you?"

* * *

**Gold Division – Team Stripes' Quarters – Early Afternoon**

"Mi—Mi—_Miss Aniiiise!_"

Ray turned around in time to see the door to the quarters shoot open and a blue-and-black blur fly through.

"Oof!"

Ray staggered back, gasping, as Leo buried his muzzle in the Raichu's stomach, where he remained, shaking. On the other end of the hall, he heard the door to the briefing room fly open; and looking up, he could see Taka enter the hall, looking shaken.

One of Anise's tail-hands touched his back, and he saw her serious expression out of the corner of his eye. Her other tail snaked into his vision and gently pried Leo away from him and into her stubby arms.

"M-M-Miss!" he wheezed, before breaking down into actual tears. Anise gently wrapped her tail hands around him and brought him close, letting him cry. Quietly and gingerly, Ray moved himself away from the Ambipom and toward Taka, who was standing by the still-open door with a scared expression fixed on her face.

He could hear all the doors opening along the hall, as the members of Team Stripes peered curiously out of their rooms.

As he opened his mouth to ask her what had happened, she raised her hand and slapped him across the muzzle.

"Hey!" He rubbed at his stinging static pouch. "What was that—"

"You---traded me that mission!" she screeched, and Ray pulled his ears down at her shrill tone. "You _idiot_! You could've got me _killed!_"

Behind them, Leo wailed in terror. Taka gasped and covered her mouth.

"N-no… I didn't mean…" She shuddered. "Sorry, Ray…"

Ray shook his head and tried to ignore the ringing in his ears. "Taka… What happened?"

"A Scizor happened, that's what."

"A Scizor!?" The cry echoed throughout the room, picked up by the other members of the Team.

Ray felt someone nuzzle his left haunch. It was Leo, who had apparently decided he'd had enough of Miss Anise's comfort. The Shinx looked up at the Raichu with tear- and fear-filled eyes.

"I dun' wanna talk abouddit," he moaned thickly. "I dun' wanna… It…it was _scary_, Ray…"

"We don't have to talk about it now, Leo," he told the Shinx, bending down to meet him on eye-level. "Taka can tell everyone about it, right?" Here he cast a hopeful glance up at the Treecko, who swallowed and then nodded.

Lionel had wormed his way through the crowd of recruits to the two of them. Ray stood back up to attention, but Leo simply sidestepped behind him and said nothing.

"Cadet?"

"Sir," said Ray. "Permission to take Leo elsewhere for now, sir?"

Lionel's piercing blue eyes narrowed, but after a few seconds' thought he nodded.

"Granted, Cadet. I'll expect a full report from you later on, Leo."

"…Dun' wanna…" The Shinx paused and sniffled, gathering himself. Finally, a sullen "…Yes, sir."

Ray nodded gratefully to the Captain, and then placed a paw carefully on the Shinx's back and lead him out of the room.

He had just enough time to hear Taka start, "Well, we got out to the gate at the same time as Team Peanuts and…and Scythe, and they were going to the same place…" before he, on reflex, turned and slid the door shut behind him. He paused thoughtfully as he realized what he'd heard, and then decided that now wasn't the time for that.

"Where d'you want to go, Leo?" he asked jovially, turning back to the Shinx. "I bet they're still serving lunch in the cafeteria, if you're hungry."

Leo mumbled something that sounded like a negative.

"Oh? We can go down to the Dojo and spar, if you want to do that."

The same negative response.

"Oh? Hmm…" Ray put a paw under his mouth and tilted his head, trying to give the Shinx a comical impression of thought. "We_elll…_"

"Zona," said Leo.

"…Eh?"

"…Wan' see Zona."

"Zona? But…" Ray was nonplussed. "If I were you, I'd want to do something that'd cheer me up, not make me feel worse."

"Won't feel worse," insisted the Shinx in a stubborn tone of voice. "Last night…we were trying too hard, I think. Trying to _make_ Zona get up." He shook his head. "That's not…how it should be done. If we force him to wake up, he won't feel any better… He'll still be scared…"

"Then…why do you want to…?"

"…Snuggle," said Leo so quickly that Ray almost failed to comprehend it. "That's…what Mommy used to do when I was scared. She'd let me snuggle with her. Zona's so nice and warm, he'll help me feel better in no time… 'N' maybe I can help him, too."

Silence filled the hallway for several minutes. Once or twice Ray reached up to brush at his nose with his paws. Leo stood where he'd been since following Ray out of the quarters, staring up at the older Pokémon with a vague sort of hope and determination in his eyes.

At last, Ray nodded.

* * *

**The Nightmare**

He felt warm.

The hearth was smoldering, the Ghosts' ridiculing cries had been reduced to barely a whisper, and he felt closer to peace than he had been in a long time.

He was still alone, wherever he was, but Zona could swear…there was someone there with him, next to him, sharing whatever insignificant body heat they could.

He hadn't said anything, nor had anything been said to him, for several hours, ever since that warmth had shown up next to him. He didn't remember eating, either, but somehow felt full.

A question had been nagging at him since earlier, when the voice had mentioned his mother. Now, that voice seemed so familiar somehow, but he still couldn't quite place it.

"What do y-you know…of m-my m-m-mother?"

Me? Nothin', Zona. You never told me anything about her.

Then it wasn't the same Pokémon…

He tried again. "…Leo?"

That's me! said the voice cheerfully. Do you remember now? Hypno said maybe you'd forgot stuff.

"F-forgot…"

Oh… I guess you don't. But you _do _know my name. That's nice, isn't it? It's nice knowing that someone knows your name. It makes you feel happy.

Zona said nothing.

I feel happy now, Zona. Even though you're not quite awake yet. You're nice and warm, good to snuggle with. Actually… I'm kinda sleepy.

"Warm? …S-s-snuggle? B-but there's no one here…"

No one here? Silly! If I'm not here, how am I talking to you?

Zona huffed. "…I…d-don't even know wh-who you are…"

Yes you do! Remember? I sat with you at lunch a few days ago.

A few days ago? Zona's memory didn't go back that far…

And then….yesterday, when you woke up, you blew fire at me! Oh, sorry about bein' mad, I know it was an accident.

"Blew f-fire? I don't…"

Why…couldn't he remember? What was missing? He felt calm, and he felt warm… But the room was still dark, as was his memory.

Leo said nothing more, though his warmth remained. As it had before, a thoughtful silence descended upon the room for several minutes as Zona focused inward, trying to understand.

Something tickled his nose. He barked, surprised, and then inhaled…

Zona sneezed, and fire flashed from his muzzle again. The tiny ember drifted forward and then faded to orange-hot ash, which landed on the wood in the firepit.

It caught.

With a _whoosh!_ the fire in the hearth flared up, and heat—actual, flame-borne heat—filled the room so suddenly that Zona leapt backwards in shock. The dark room was filled with the bright orange, flickering light of fire.

And the mocking cries of the Ghosts faded out at last, to be replaced with the cries of the living.

Zona snapped his gaze to one of the windows: the darkness was gone, and a deep-blue, evening sky had taken its place. He rushed to one of the openings, looked out, and saw chaos unfold.

A Rhydon stampeded down the lane, chasing after a fleeing Ivysaur; several baby Kangaskhan ran by, crying and distraught. Zona thought he saw blood on more than a few of them. In the distance, more fire flared, as some of the wooden houses caught and burned.

The village had been…_ was being destroyed_.

"_Zona!"_ _barked his father imperiously, and the Vulpix pulled himself away from the window. "Come! I must take you to safety!"_

"_What…wh-wh-what's g-g-going on, F-F-Father!?"_

"_The Master," growled Amoscandar, "has decided that he's had enough of our little village, it seems. But come on, kit! I know of a place that will keep you safe!"_

_The little fox Pokémon scrambled obediently after his Ninetales father, questions burning through his mind so fast they didn't have time to get to his tongue. What had they done to anger the Master? Why were other Pokémon being attacked? Where was—_

"_Stop!"_

_The sunlight was glaring in through the open doorway, and against its radiance Zona could see the outline of his mother._

"_Miranda!" snapped Amoscandar, stopping in front of her. Zona skidded to a halt beside his father. "Quickly! We must flee the Master's wrath—"_

"_No," said Miranda quietly. "Traitors deserve destruction. The Master's word is law."_

"_What—outrageous talk is this!?" screamed his father. Zona, who had never heard his father yell so loudly before, backed away._

"_It is at the command of the Master that I do this," continued Miranda flatly. "A traitor resides in this village, a member of that 'Resistance' that believes it can topple the Master's almighty power. I grew tired of searching that traitor out… And so I will make sure that anyone who could be the traitor will never leave the village alive."_

"_You!?" Amos's tails were whipping up and down wildly. "_You_ are the commander of these forces?"_

"_It is at the command of the Master that I do this," repeated Miranda in the same quiet tone._

"_You would kill everyone—even the children—for the sake of a single traitor!?"_

"_The children? Nay. A child could not have so cleverly outwitted me. The children will be spared. As will you."_

"_Me?" Amoscandar sat down and curled his tails gracefully behind him._

_Then he began to laugh, long and slow and sarcastic. Zona backed away further, terrified now._

"_M-M-Mother… F-Father… What are you…t-talking about?"_

"_You would kill the entire village…" said Amoscandar in a low voice, "save the children… And the one Pokémon that deserves to die?"_

_For a long, long moment—an eternity, imprinted forever in Zona's memory—there was stillness, and the sound of the screaming and destruction outside._

_Then Miranda snarled and leapt into the room, knocking Amos onto his back and putting her fangs at his throat._

_And Zona ran._

"_You brat!" screamed his mother in a voice that was not hers. But Zona continued to run, out into the village, into the chaos—it didn't matter, as long as he got away from his mother. "No—don't! Don't run! No, Zona! Wait---I—!"_

Somewhere between awake and asleep, dead and alive, Zonaphèras screamed.

And then there was the sound.

He was floating in a black void, cold and alone. Sound was coming from somewhere—from everywhere at once, it felt like—in a low, throbbing hum. Gradually, the sound grew louder, and color—myriad, rainbow, iridescent color—filled the void. The sound doubled, began to harmonize with itself, and Zona raised a paw to try and shield his eyes from the light. The volume intensified, louder and still louder…

There was a tensing in the air around him.

And then sound that was not sound rolled over him, blasted through him in waves, and tore through his fear and through his illusion, and for a moment Zona saw everything with perfect clarity.

_**PLEASE, HELP ME!**_

With a start, Zona awoke.

* * *

**Gold Division – Medical Ward (Psychotherapy Wing)**

The torches were red and the room was only slightly lit—it seemed to be the middle of the night. He lay in the position he'd awakened in, prone on his side, gasping for breath, feeling his heart racing.

Upstairs. He had to get upstairs.

Wait…

Zona rolled onto his stomach and shakily found his way to his four paws.

Why?

Movement that he hadn't noticed before now caught his eye: a blue-and-black shape was staggering sleepily toward the door.

A Shinx? _Leo._

He remembered everything. Ray, Leo, the Captain, the mission… Why had he forgotten? The shock of the thought was enough to rob him of his strange desire to go upstairs. With a whine, he shook his head and tried to climb down from the bedlike ledge he was on. He found, as he set them down, that his forelegs couldn't take the weight and collapsed, and the Vulpix slid unceremoniously to the floor.

"_Leo!" _he whispered loudly, but the Shinx took no notice, staggering to the door and opening it. Zona pushed himself to his paws again and hurried after as fast as he could.

They were in a hallway in the base he didn't recognize; it was narrower than most of the halls he'd seen so far, and he didn't see signs that the place was lived in much, though there were tracks across the floor.

"Leo…" he tried again, but still the Shinx paid him no mind.

He could hear what sounded like a lot of Pokémon moving, could feel the floor vibrating under the pounding of myriad paws and feet. But the hallway rounded a corner ahead, and he couldn't see well at any rate in the dim red torchlight.

"Leo!" Zona half-yelped, with the same amount of success as before. Worried, now, Zona whined and, with the profound feeling that he was going to regret it, pounced forward and bit down on Leo's tail.

Lightning erupted behind his eyes and all over his body, a painful and unfamiliar heat and pain arcing through all of his limbs. Involuntarily, he let go of the Shinx's tail.

"_Yowch!_" Leo jumped in fright and pain, all his fur standing on end.

Zona dropped back onto his rump, muzzle smoking slightly and his eyes glassy. Leo turned around.

"Zona! You're awake! Oh! Oh, no!" he exclaimed, noticing the Vulpix's state. "You… I hurt you, din't I? Oh, no, oh, no, I'm so _sorry! _Sometimes when I get surprised I just can't—"

"It's…okay…" mumbled Zona, and then licked at his muzzle, wincing. "…You…didn't…respond when I called your name. I was worried… I… don't know what's going on…"

"I didn't…?" Leo looked around. "When did we get out in the hallway? I remember some kinda dream or something, and I wanted to go upstairs… Was I sleepwalking?"

Zona shook his head helplessly.

"Hey, wait a sec!" Leo bounced in place. "Say something else, Zona!"

"Wh…what? I…I don't know what's going on. I had a dream, too, and when I woke up…"

"Zo_na_!" snapped Leo, as though he'd missed the point. "You're awake, now… And you're _not stuttering!_"

"I'm…not? …I'm _not_," Zona realized, and then, for want of anything else to do, began to laugh hysterically. Leo joined him, still bouncing happily in place.

"Come on! Come _on!_" he shouted. "We've gotta go show Ray and Taka and everybody! And…and they'll wanna know you're awake!"

The two young Pokémon ran down the dark hallway, rounded the bend, and came out into a large, empty chamber. Zona noticed the pawprints for _Medical Wing_ imprinted on one wall before a shout from Leo made him skid to a stop.

"_Whoa…"_

They'd come to a large doorway, the door of which had been thrown open. Beyond the opening, one of the regular halls of the base stretched in either direction. It was currently full of Pokémon. Pokémon of all shapes and sizes and types, all staggering sleepily—and in some case _asleep_—in the same direction.

Leo sat dumbstruck, for once with nothing to say. It was left to Zona, with his new stutter-free voice, to speak next.

"Maybe…we'd better wait here…"

* * *

A/N:

I realize I haven't gone out of my way to talk about pronunciations yet, and now that I've introduced Zona's father's name I figure I may as well.

Zonaphèras / Zona (ZONE-uh-FAIR-us) / (ZONE-uh)

Amoscandar / Amos (AY-mohs-KAND-er) / (AY-mohs)

Miranda (MEER-an-duh)

The è found in Zona's full name is used primarily in French (and I believe in Italian) to convey the sound English speakers associate with short E ("Eh", as "bed"). Therefore, in English, unlike é, "ay," it has no pronunciation of its own, being more of an emphasis mark than an accent. It is used in his name merely to indicate the stress given to that syllable (otherwise it would be pronounced ZONE-aph-er-us).


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Sorry for the long delay. School's practically out for me, though, so I should be able to get some serious writing done.

Yes, yes, I said the same thing last year. I mean it, this time.

Ray, Leo, and all other material from _Silver Resistance_ belong to ScytheRider. Certain dialogue in this chapter is pulled verbatim from _Silver _Resistance: this is also ScytheRider's. Pokémon and all related official material belongs to Nintendo et al. Zona, Amos, Lionel, and Anise are mine, though.

* * *

**Chapter 5**

In fact it was all Zona and Leo could do to get back to Team Stripes' quarters that night, winding their way through the throngs of hypnotized Pokémon all determined, even in their lurching unawareness, to get upstairs.

They had done as Zona had suggested for a short time, and stayed where they were. After a while, though, it became apparent that waiting would mean spending the rest of the night (…the morning?) in the Medical Ward. So eventually, Leo had, will a small grunt, leaped out into the crowded hallway and began to very slowly move against the flow.

"Of course," muttered Zona to himself as he followed, thinking aloud more to enjoy his new voice than because it helped, "we live _downstairs…_"

A heavy paw or claw of some sort smashed him unwittingly across the back of the head at this point, and he had to stop as lights glared behind his eyelids.

"Zona!" he heard Leo whisper from some distance ahead. "Keep up!"

"Sorry," he responded in kind, shaking his head. He shot a glance back as he went, noted that the one who had hit him was an unaware Quagsire, and, though he later felt guilty about it, stuck his tongue out at the retreating Pokémon.

It got easier as they continued, because the lower ranked teams lived on the lower levels and thus the Pokémon coming up tended to be smaller and easier to slip by. After several minutes and several sets of stairs, the two paused to rest in the corner of the hallway.

"That's really weird," declared Leo as an Ekans wound its way up to them and then turned toward the staircase. "It's like everyone wants to get out, or something. You don't think anything's gonna happen, do you?"

"No…" Zona blinked. "I think…that everything that's going to happen has happened."

"I wish I could remember what that dream was about. It looks like everyone else is having it." Leo pouted. "I hate being left out."

"Ack!" The Ekans had hit its head against one of the stairs halfway up, and the manner with which it cringed suggested quite clearly that the snake Pokémon had woken up. "Curssess! Why in Ambera did I fall assssleep on a sstaircasssse?"

"You didn't!" explained Leo cheerfully. The Ekans turned and fixed him with a questioning gaze. "You were trying to get up the staircase, but it's not easy to do when you're asleep."

"Why…?" rattled the Ekans as it descended awkwardly toward them. " Yesss, perhapsss…Lasssst thing I knew, I wassss in my quartersss… " It shifted its gaze to Zona, who swallowed, and then back to Leo. "But… I do not ssleep-sslither. I never have. Why would I sstart now?"

Hissing irritably, and without waiting for a reply, it turned and began to slither back the way it had come. Zona stared after it for a minute before realizing Leo had begun to follow it. With a quiet yap, the Vulpix trotted after his friend.

He didn't know how deep they were now, but the hallways they passed through now were nearly empty. Some way down the hall the Ekans turned and entered a doorway, presumably to its team's quarters. Zona and Leo continued onward, meeting and stopping several other Pokémon as they went, who all muttered the same confused phrase about "upstairs." To each, before they returned to their quarters, Zona asked why. None of them knew the answer.

As the two Pokémon stepped carefully down what would turn out to be the final staircase, Zona kept his head down and stared at the step beneath. He was troubled, for some murky, unfathomable reason. He had been awakened from his nightmare—yanked, more like, as though someone had grabbed hold of his tails and dragged him screaming from his own memories and back into the real world—and then, suddenly, every Pokémon in the base was struggling to get "upstairs." How far upstairs? Because certainly they wouldn't want to _leave _the base during the middle of the night.

And… Zona let out a shuddering breath as he remembered… whose voice had so desperately cried for help? It sounded familiar, in a way he couldn't describe or for a reason he couldn't explain.

But there was no point in worrying about it now. For all the sleep he'd apparently been having, he really wanted to get to sleep…

"Zona!" called Leo. With a start, the Vulpix stopped and turned around. He'd been so engrossed in his own thoughts that he'd walked past the Shinx, who'd stopped in front of the entrance to Team Stripes' quarters. "You okay?"

"Fine…" he mumbled back as he walked back the way he'd come. "Just…thinking about all this."

"Why?" Leo laughed quietly. "I wouldn't wanna think about all this now. Right now I just wanna sleep."

"Yeah…" said Zona. "My thoughts exactly…"

* * *

**Team Stripes' Quarters (Ray & Leo's Room)**

"_ZONA!_"

Something huge barreled into his side and he awoke, shouting and instinctually scrabbling at his attacker and at the ground, trying to break free. Small tongues of flame slipped out of his muzzle as he whined.

"Whoa! Whoa! Okay, man, I'm sorry!"

The pressure and weight left him and Zona's limbs relaxed, though he continued to breathe heavily and he could feel his heart racing. His brain finally caught up.

"Ray…" he breathed, getting to his paws. He turned toward the Raichu, and noticed the bleeding scratch along his haunch. "Oh… I'm sorry, Ray, I didn't mean to…"

"Huh?" The Raichu looked down and brushed at the scratch, and then shrugged. "I didn't even notice." His eyes snapped back up to Zona. "You're awake! I mean… Who would have thought? I thought Leo's idea wasn't going to help much, but…"

"I don't think it was Leo. Um. Not entirely," he added as he spotted the Shinx smiling behind Ray.

"You don't?"

Zona shook his head. "When I woke up… Leo was already moving."

For the first time he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. He glanced to his left and saw Taka, who was leaning against the wall by the door looking a little out of place. She met his gaze for an instant, and then looked away.

Ray had paused thoughtfully and scratched at the back of his head. "That dream, do you think? I remember this weird dream… Thought I heard someone calling my name. "

"I…had a dream like that, too," said Taka quietly.

"I just remember wanting to go upstairs," chimed in Leo.

"What about you, Zona?" asked Ray. "Did you have a dream like that?"

Zona hesitated. "I…"

"Guys!" There was a knocking on the door outside. After a second to think Zona identified the Squirtle's—Cirrus'—voice. "Get up! Captain's calling for order! High Intelligence has called an assembly!"

"Coming!" Ray responded. He waved his paw invitingly at Zona, and moved to the door. Zona and Leo followed; Taka did not move, as she was already beside the door. However, as he moved to leave the room and enter the common chamber, the Treecko's hand shot out and caught Zona on the shoulder. He looked up at her, surprised.

"Can we…" she swallowed and blinked her yellow eyes. "Can we talk later?"

"What? …Um… Sure. Why…?"

"Just…" Taka stopped. "Just…let's talk, okay?"

"Cadets!" roared the Captain's voice. "In order!"

Zona nodded to the Treecko and left the room, and began to find his way to his position in the back of the chamber, before—

"Zona!"

"Hey, it's Zona! He's back!"

"Welcome back, Zona!"

"Glad to see you're feeling better!"

Zona sat down in surprise as every member of Team Stripes turned toward him and began to shout encouragement and welcome.

"I heard you were really brave, Zona!"

"Wow! You got better!"

"Hi there, Zona!"

He noticed Cirrus peeking out from the still-mostly-organized group of young Pokémon. She smiled when he met her gaze, and waved a claw.

"Cadets!" Lionel's voice echoed across the room. As one, Team Stripes turned back toward the front and stood at attention. "…We'll have a chance to welcome back Cadet Zona later. For now, High Intelligence has called an assembly…"

"Is it about that earthquake last night?" cried a Larvitar as Zona wound his way back beside Zeven. The Sneasel gave him an encouraging smile and, making sure his claws had been retracted, gave the Vulpix a quick pat on the head.

"Dummy! There wasn't no earthquake! You musta' been dreamin'!" sniggered the Team's Meowth.

"There was, too!" cried Evan the Eevee.

"Cadets!" roared Lionel. "I will have _order_ here!" At the sound of the Captain's voice, the children fell silent and looked forward again. "Now! Whether there was or wasn't an earthquake earlier isn't an issue now. High Intelligence will tell us everything we need to know at the assembly. Now! Single file, down the hall, and don't any of you say a word until we arrive!"

* * *

**Gold Division – Meeting Hall**

The room was already half-full by the time they arrived, though the noise of several hundred Pokémon all talking and shouting at once, as well as the fact that the Teams already present had crammed down toward the stage in the center of the chamber, made it feel full to bursting. Zona's keen hearing picked up more than a few complaints about lack of sleep.

Team Stripes was set down, still in alphabetical order, about a third of the way down toward the stage, with a great deal of room between them and the crowds at the front.

As Zona settled down on the wide sandstone bench, Zeven, sitting beside him, leaned back and stretched his claws experimentally.

"Can't wait," he muttered with suppressed excitement, his dark eyes glittering.

"What for?" asked Zona.

"I talked with the captain of Team Dread yesterday," responded Zeven, thrusting his claws forward at the air with lightning speed. "He said he liked the look of me. He's gonna take me on as a sort of trial member, see if I'm fit for the team." He grinned, his fangs glittering in the orange light. The air whistled under his rapid assault. "Vazidor's _awesome_."

His right claw lashed out a final time and hung there, the Sneasel frozen in place. "It's good to see you back on your paws, though, dude," he continued, barely moving his mouth. "You had me worried for a little while." Finally the Sneasel relaxed, retracting his claws and leaning back on both of his arms. "But you're pretty tough for a little guy, you know. 'Sides, you're a Fire-type. Fire-types aren't the sort to give up."

The rest of the room was slowly filling up. The other training teams had settled in mostly behind, and some in front of, Team Stripes, and the rest of the teams, the full-fledged ones, were filling the gap between them and the crowds near the stage.

"Hey," shouted Zeven over the increasing din. Zona inched closer to him. "Listen. My graduation ceremony's tomorrow afternoon. After that, how about we take a bit of a walk around, huh? You and me?"

"What…for?" asked Zona, slightly suspicious.

"You know," responded the Sneasel carefully. "See…some of the other teams, you know? Maybe get a chance to," he paused, grinning, for all of a fraction of a second, "_talk_ with that Machop buddy of yours, Eli."

Zona opened his mouth to respond, but motion out of the corner of his eye made him turn his head forward again. A massive, metallic blue Pokémon was descending from the ceiling, hard red eyes staring out over the crowds. With a crashing _thud!_ that echoed over the noise in the chamber, it settled down on the stage.

"That's Metagross," said Zeven reverently. "The head of High Intelligence… They say, you know, it never sleeps, always strategizing and planning…"

Zona stared at the dark red pinpricks just barely visible at this distance, stark against the Pokémon's bright blue body. "All I know…is that I never want to make him mad…"

"Good morning!" a voice rang out from the stage, and Zona cringed at its loudness. From this distance, he couldn't tell who of the several Pokémon now on the stage had spoken. "Thus begins the thirty-eighth grand convention of the Gold Division of the Great Resistance. I apologize for… the sudden and inconvenient timing of such a meeting, but due to recent circumstances, we have much to discuss. So, without wasting any more time, it's my pleasure to introduce to you… your greatest servants, High Intelligence."

A yellow-and-brown smudge in front of Metagross stepped forward.

"Alakazam," muttered Zeven.

"First and foremost," a deep voice boomed, and Zona heard it echo all around the room as well as within his head, "the issue that's on everyone's mind at this early hour… Late last night, approximately three twenty-two AM, by the human clock, there was…an epidemic amongst the entire division."

Zeven snorted. "Yeah. Way to understate it." His voice was not the only one to arise.

"Over half of the members of the Gold Division awoke last night, almost instantaneously, and began to wander around the base in a state of half-consciousness. There have been many rumors surrounding this strange occurrence, but Metagross has determined the most likely cause to be…" There was a long pause, and the entire assembly seemed to hold its breath. Behind him, in a squeaky voice, Zona heard somebody whisper "The Call!"

The yellow smudge that was Alakazam shifted slightly. "…an earthquake."

The crowd erupted into a tumult. Pokémon all around the room leaped to their rear appendages, shouting and jumping up and down.

"I _told_ you!" Zona heard Evan cry.

Zeven was laughing. "Ha, ha… an earthquake?" He shook his head.

"It was the Call! The _Call!_" screamed the Pokémon behind Zona that had whispered earlier. He cringed, then looked over at Zeven, who still had a sarcastic smile playing across his face. The Sneasel returned his gaze.

"You don't seem to be taking this too hard. What, you believe 'em?"

"No…" Zona shook his head. "I…don't think it was an earthquake."

"Quiet! _Quiet!_" Alakazam was broadcasting.

"Oh? Why?"

"Because…" Zona looked back down toward the stage. "Earthquakes…don't usually scream for help…"

* * *

**Gold Division – Team Stripes' Quarters – thirty minutes later**

"I _told_ you it was an earthquake," pouted Evan to everybody in general as Team Stripes poured back into the common hall.

The Meowth, padding along in front of Zona, growled. "I guess yew was right, Evan. 'Cuz if High Intelligence says it, it's gotta be true."

"They wouldn't lie, would they?" Cirrus wondered.

"Of course not!" insisted Tyson, the Larvitar.

The cadets had formed into little clumps, and each of these clumps had drifted toward one of the rooms off of the common hall. Zona, Taka, Ray, and Leo headed for theirs, but halfway across the hall the Treecko gently touched Zona on the shoulder and pointed the other way.

Ray had noticed. "Hey, guys," he said, turning. "What'd you stop for? There's no one else out here, might as well head back to our room."

"It's…um…" Taka seemed unsure.

"Uh… We'll…catch up," Zona insisted for her sake.

Ray stared for a second, nonplussed, and then shrugged. "Alright… we'll see you in a bit. C'mon, Leo."

"Bye, Zona!" chirped the Shinx as he followed Ray. After the door into their room slid closed, Zona turned back to Taka.

"What…did you want to…?"

"Iwantedtoapologize," mumbled Taka. Zona simply stared back. "I…wanted to apologize," she repeated. "Because… I, uh, well… When you first showed up…" Her tail was whipping back and forth nervously. "I kinda just thought you were a kid, you know? Some little kid who thought he had what it took to become a member of the team, but had no idea what that really meant."

"…I…I don't know if I have what it takes, though…"

"You didn't talk much, you stared at me… I…thought, actually, that you were kinda stupid, you know? Please don't get mad!"

Zona's muzzle opened and his eyes sharpened slightly in a vulpine frown. "Stupid…?"

"I didn't know, okay? I didn't know…about the deal with the Watchers. Um. I saw that you were a Fire-type, and I just sort of jumped to conclusions."

Zona said nothing.

"I'm _sorry!_" whined Taka again. "I'm sorry I didn't take the time to get to know you. I'm sorry I brushed you off as an idiot. I understand now… At least, I think I understand now…"

Zona looked down, blinking. "You…understand better." He wet his nose. "But you assume, like Zeven, that you _can _understand… I…" He paused. "There are things about me even I don't understand. I don't think anyone else could, either."

There was a prolonged silence between the two. Taka clenched her hands together and stared down at the Vulpix nervously, while Zona kept his gaze to the floor, face betraying nothing.

"I…am glad you told me," he said finally. "I... Um. I….don't like making enemies. But it happens. Even if I don't try."

"Can…this time, do you think you could make…a f-friend?" asked the Treecko in a wavering voice, as though she were about to cry.

"…A friend." He blinked. "Like…Ray and Leo."

He looked up. "Yes…a friend…would be nice."

Nervous tears making her eyes waver, Taka gave a hiccoughing laugh and, before he knew what had happened, reached down and hugged him. Within half a second, however, she had backed off.

"Thanks," she whispered, before turning and dashing toward their room.

Zona stared after her, confusion roiling in his brown eyes.

_Did she really think… I was stupid?_

"_I thought you were just a kid… a kid who thought he had what it took, but had no idea what that meant._"

_What did she mean? …I'm… I don't think I have what it takes. I'm not brave, I'm not strong… I had some vague idea of getting Mother back for everything she did, but it's not so simple any more…_ He snuffled. _And… They all like me. They trust me. …Why…can't I understand…?_

An awkward knocking on the door to the base's hallway made him jump nearly half a foot. He spun, blinking rapidly to clear the tears that had begun to build, and trotted to the door.

_Knk, knk, knk,_ went the knocking at the door. It sounded strange—like something hard, but brittle or hollow. And the rhythm was strange, as though the limb used for knocking was being used for something it was not used to.

More than a little nervously, and still snuffling slightly, Zona reached out a forepaw and slid the door open. Then he looked up.

He saw green, and green, and more green, shiny and gleaming. A hard, armor-like body, bipedal, but where its forearms should be there were only twin blades, honed to an edge so sharp that Zona's eyes watered as he tried to see it. A lizard-like muzzle topped the figure, whose hard eyes seemed to be looking around, confused. Then it started and looked down.

Zona fell backwards onto his rump from the force of the Scyther's gaze.

"You…" the Bug Pokémon rasped. "You were the one in the Creed Chamber a few days ago…"

Zona quaked, unable to say a word.

"A Vulpix…" The Scyther seemed to debate with himself for a moment, and then cleared his throat. "…Forgive me. I…didn't mean to scare you."

"Y-y-you…" Zona clamped his jaw shut. He had just gotten _rid _of the stutter: he _would not _start again. "You're…Scythe…aren't you? Captain of…"

"Team Remorse, yes." The Scyther stepped around him into the common hall. Zona scrambled to his paws again and stood out of his way, trying to stand at attention and failing under the weight of Scythe's gaze.

"…I… I'm Zona, sir. The newest member of the team."

"Zona…" Scythe shifted slightly. "Zona…phèras?"

"Yes, sir."

The Scyther blinked, and cleared his throat again. "You…have my sympathies. Your father, when I knew him, was a great Pokémon. A good leader. His death…" He shook his head. "Terrible."

Zona tried to come up with a response, and found nothing.

"Tell me, Zona," continued Scythe gently. "Is Captain Lionel in?"

"Yes, sir," breathed Zona. He looked to the other end of the hall, at the door to the Captains' office. "In…in there, sir."

Scythe began to walk—and almost silently, for his size—toward the door, before turning back toward the Vulpix. "There's no need to be so nervous…" He laughed, once. "I'm just a Pokémon, just like you, for all you've probably heard of me."

Zona looked down, thinking. He heard Scythe begin to move again and then looked up. "That may be true, sir. But isn't the Master just a Pokémon as well?"

Scythe stopped again, looking down. Zona could see nothing of the Bug Pokémon's face. Without replying, without so much as acknowledging that he had heard, Scythe continued on toward the Captains' room.

_But Zona is a Vulpix._

_Zona, you're a Vulpix. Tell me, do you feel like we're being watched?_

_Huh… A Vulpix indeed._

_A Vulpix…_

It took him a moment to realize his name was being called. He shook his head vigorously and looked up. Scythe was looking back at him again.

"Come with me," Scythe said, a smile in his eyes. "You can be the first Pokémon to hear my plan."

"Your…plan, sir?" parroted Zona as he trotted down the hall.

"Yes, my plan," repeated Scythe again. "You'll hear the details when Lionel does," he continued, knocking awkwardly on the Captain's door with the dull side of his scythe, "but I have an idea for…"

* * *

"…A party!" Team Stripes, for once in an informal crowd in the main hall, had all responded at once to the Scyther's plan.

"…Does everyone have to repeat what I say?" Scythe laughed. Lionel, next to him, looked disgruntled, and this look deepened when Scythe added, "Honestly, Lionel, are you sure you haven't just got a bunch of Chatot in disguise on your team?"

Lionel cleared his throat.

"Anyway, yes," said the Scyther, standing straight again. "You've all heard about the mission to Etcher Ravine. Some of you," and here he glanced at Taka and at Leo, beside Zona, "were _on _the mission to Etcher Ravine."

Leo shuffled just slightly closer to Zona.

"One of the things that the Scizor, Adiel, mentioned, had to do with another Pokémon on the mission, Saura, a Bulbasaur and a member of Team Ember." Scythe paused. "Saura came to us because he was running away from the Master's recruiters. Adiel swore to him that within…well, two days, now, he will have been found and forced into the Master's service."

"Let 'em try," muttered Zeven darkly. Ray and several of the other older cadets affirmed his statement with various cries of "Yeah!" "That's right!"

"My point precisely," said Scythe, grinning. "And so… as soon as the hour of midnight passes, two days from now, I will bring Saura and his friend Char down here… for a party. A… liberation party, if you will."

"Yeah!" shouted Tyson.

"Let's do it!"

"For Saura!"

"I'll help with the cake!"

"Cake? Who said anything about cake?"

"There's a party! There's gotta be cake!"

"E_nough!_"

The Team fell silent at Lionel's command.

"Obviously," said the Captain slowly. "We think this is a good idea and we're all perfectly willing to help out. But we need to have a plan, a strategy…" He grinned. "We need to make it the best party the Base has ever seen!"

With the exception of Zona, every member of Team Stripes leapt to his or her paws and cheered.

The Vulpix himself just smiled.

* * *

"Captain?"

Lionel grunted, surprised. He looked up from the desk and spotted Zona standing in the open doorway.

"Cadet."

"I'm not intruding, am I?" asked Zona hesitantly.

"What? No, not at all, boy." He pulled his forepaws to the ground and walked around the desk, closer to the Vulpix. "Not that I've got a whole lot to do, you know… No more missions for us." His blue eyes sparkled with a rare smile. "How are the preparations for the party coming along?"

"I went with Ray to get some of the decorations from Kecleon… Cirrus and Tyson headed down to the kitchens… I heard some of the others talking about snacks and such." He paused, looking down. "But… Well, I came here … to ask you something, Captain."

"Look _up_, boy," said Lionel quietly. Zona pulled his gaze from the floor. "Pokémon like you should have more pride. What can I do for you?"

"That's…actually what I wanted to ask about, sir," said Zona nervously. "When you said 'Pokémon like you.'"

"Yes?"

The Vulpix shuffled his paw nervously along the floor. "W-well…" He stopped. "I mean… From the very moment I arrived at this Base, and Voltali brought me to your team… Others have been pointing out the fact that I'm a Vulpix." His voice became quieter the more he spoke. Lionel's small, sharp ears swiveled forward. "Like…you yourself, sir. 'Tell me, do you feel like we're being watched?' 'But _Zona_ is a Vulpix.'"

He shuddered.

"But… what does that even mean? Why does being a Vulpix make me special? I…don't want to be special…"

The flames turned red. In the new carmine lighting, Zona became hard to see, except for his eyes, which glistened intently.

"That…" The Captain took a deep breath. "That… isn't something that can be easily explained. It's late, Zona. I might as well tell you the whole story at once. Ask me tomorrow." He began to turn away.

"No!" wailed Zona, so desperately that Lionel had no choice but to turn and face him again. "I…won't have the n-nerve…the _nerve_, tomorrow."

"Then I'll find you," Lionel promised. This time he managed to get as far as the other side of the desk.

"Even Scythe noticed!" Zona was shaking, and Lionel could see his eyes glistening. Past him, out in the common hall, some of the other members of Team Stripes were staring into the room. "It's the first thing he said! 'A Vulpix.' Like it mattered!"

"Zona…" sighed the Captain.

"Please!"

"Zona?"

Ray was standing outside the door. "What's the matter?"

"Cadet!" Lionel forced his voice into its usual gruffness. "Don't you worry. Go and make sure the younger Pokémon are heading for bed. And…shut the door on your way out!"

"But Captain…"

"Raik-Ray! Shut the door and go!"

Without another word, the Raichu slid the door shut.

There was silence, broken after a moment when the Vulpix began to snuffle. Lionel heard tears impacting the floor.

Very slowly, the Linoone stepped back around the desk. Zona's eyes were closed and he was shaking, tears sliding down his muzzle and to the floor.

"Tell me one thing, Zona," the Captain said gently. "Why do you think it matters?"

"Because everyone's expecting these things of me!" Zona bit out. "Everyone thinks….I should be stronger, I should be braver, I should be smarter! I should be able to do things most Pokémon can't!" He sobbed, once. "I…don't understand!"

Lionel grit his teeth.

"Zona! Stop your whimpering!"

The Vulpix leapt back, frightened, shaking, but though the tears continued to fall, he said nothing more.

Lionel looked around in surprise. Anise was standing in the doorway to the Captains' chambers, stubby paws on her hips and her tail-hands balled into fists, swaying above her head. An uncharacteristically fierce look was on her face.

Lionel looked at her eyes and stepped back.

The Ambipom strode forward, one of her tails grabbing Zona by the scruff of his neck and lifting him into the air. He whined.

"I'm a patient Pokémon," said Anise quietly. "I'm also, according to the members of my team, kind, generous, and loving." The other tail reached out and grabbed Zona's muzzle. "But I will not stand for selfish temper tantrums!"

Zona whined again.

"Is that clear?"

Zona nodded as best he could. Anise set him down gently, and he pressed himself against the wall, away from her.

The anger faded from Anise's eyes, and she dropped both her tails to the floor. "…I'm sorry."

"You were right," said Lionel, stepping past her. "I would have answered your question after you mentioned Scythe, Zona. There was no need to get out of hand, screaming and crying. You should be more…" He stopped himself. "…Never mind." He turned his muzzle toward the Ambipom, who was standing with her forestumps together and staring at Zona. "Thank you, Anise. You can go to bed, now."

"…Are you…ordering me?" she asked suddenly.

"No," he said. She nodded, and as he turned his head back toward the still-mute Vulpix Lionel heard the door slide closed behind him. "Now… You want an answer so badly, I'll give you one.

"First of all, Zona, you've got to understand how rare your kind is. Ninetales and Vulpix have only a small population here in Ambera. The fact that your mother and father met at all, in a village the size of yours, is impressive. Second, the number of Vulpix born in a given year is invariably smaller than five, because female Ninetales can be…picky about breeding."

Zona sneezed.

"To your health," Lionel toasted. "Now, beyond that… The abilities of Ninetales and Vulpix are the stuff of folklore. Their affinity for the supernatural, their longevity… Now, I don't put much stock in myths and the like, and… Well, I can't say about anyone else, least of all Scythe, but I wouldn't have been so persistent in calling you what you are if I hadn't met some of your kind before." He paused. "The newsletter that came out the day you were comatose… Have you read it?"

"M'fthr…" Zona swallowed. "My father…was a member of a Team called Faith."

"The newsletter did him no justice. Your father wasn't just a member of that team, he was the captain. And if ever there was a team to rival Scythe's Remorse or, dare I say it, Lucario's Regret, it was Amoscandar's Faith."

Lionel sighed. "And he had it, too. Unshakable faith that the Master's rule would come to an end. They say… and here I can only say what I've heard… that he'd been fighting the Master since before the Resistance. For most, or all, of his life. And no one knew for sure how old he was. All I know is he was already a Ninetales when I met him."

"…Did you…join his team?"

"I did." Lionel nodded. "Team Faith was a varied team, from the skilled strategists and battle masters that would take the hardest, riskiest missions…all the way to little rookies, even an idealistic little Zigzagoon."

"He let you on the team?"

"His was one of the training teams of the time. Like Stripes is now. Just…more varied, like I said." The Captain began to pace, slowly, not once feeling Zona's eyes leaving him. "And your father… knew every member of his team. Every single one. The first thing he would do, any time a new recruit joined, is he would take that recruit out, just the two of them, on a survival mission. Out in the wilderness, maybe through a Mystery Dungeon. He talked with them, learned who they were, how they thought, how they moved. He built his team from the ground up with the care of an artist creating a masterpiece." He stopped, and met Zona's gaze. "Everything I know about this business… I learned from him."

"Do you…remember when he took you out?" asked Zona hopefully.

"Like yesterday," said Lionel. "A day spent with a charismatic Pokémon like a Ninetales isn't one you forget."

* * *

**Thirteen Years Ago**

"Wow!" _Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle_. "This smells good! Hey, what's over there?" _Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle._ "Mm, this smells good too, Captain! Why don't you try some?"

"Lionel!"

The Zigzagoon froze, jaw opened to take the fruit into his mouth.

"I told you, boy, do not separate yourself from me! Return here at once!"

Lionel shuffled away from the bush, leaving the tantalizing berry untasted. He wandered in a random fashion, slowly left, then right, then quickly left, then slowly right, but always forward. Eventually the tall figure of the Ninetales came into his view.

"Cap_tainnn_…" he moaned plaintively, bushy tail wagging. "It looked tasty… An' I'm hungry…"

Amos sighed. "I tell you truthfully, Lionel, I have been taking recruits like you out for a long time, and not once have I had a recruit so bizarre as you."

Lionel's zig-zag-shaped muzzle opened playfully. "Thanks, Captain!"

"It was not a compliment." Amos' ruby eyes smoldered. "I will remind you again… I cannot keep you safe if you do not keep near me."

"But! But! There're always cool things to see! No matter where I go! Something neat over here, then over there, then over here…"

"Listen, boy," said Amos flatly. "This is the first Truth of survival, and it is the basis for all the others. Listen, learn, and take my words to heart. _Listen,_" he said again, and Lionel's ears perked forward. "The body does as the mind says." He paused. "If your mind is distracted by a new scent, you will search for it. If you notice a flash of color out of the corner of your eye, and you are curious, you will turn that way and look for its source. If your mind says to not focus, you will not focus. If your mind says to fight you will fight. Do you understand?"

"So..." Lionel's nose scrunched up in thought. "If I wanna get stronger, I gotta think about getting stronger?"

"In the broadest sense... yes." Amos paused again. "I will test you. I will draw two lines through the path, parallel to each other. Follow between them and do not deviate."

("Did you succeed?" asked Zona, frustration all but forgotten.

Lionel barked a laugh. "No.")

"Again, boy, again!" Amoscandar snarled.

("Not for a long time. We spent hours in one spot, just me, him, and those parallel lines...")

"Again!"

("But I learned it eventually." Lionel nodded. "That's something your father had. Patience. And persistence.")

"This is the second Truth," said the Ninetales several hours later. It was dark out, and the two Pokémon were buried deep in a foxhole, close together in the dark and sheltered from the Watchers. "The mind does as the body demands."

"Wh...wh...what?" yawned Lionel.

"The body will do as the mind says, but as the body begins to tire so does the mind. Grind yourself to exhaustion, and you will not be able to think clearly. Fight to exhaustion, and you will die."

("That's another thing your father did...taught what he called the Truths. He had Truths for lots of things: the Truths of Survival, the Truths of Strategy, the Truths of Etiquette... They all built on each other, starting with the simplest of the simple, the things you take for granted, and building to these grand, complex ideas." Lionel stopped talking, and Zona saw him staring at the wall, though the Vulpix doubted that that was what the Captain was seeing. "What I remember, more than anything, was...that night, he just started talking about himself. No prompting. Nothing. Just...")

"...I have been at this for a long time," the Ninetales grumbled. "Far longer than you have been alive... You...do know about my kind, don't you?"

"Not really, sir," admitted the Zigzagoon.

"We live for a thousand years... A millennium. An unthinkably long time for such short-lived creatures as your kind... The blink of an eye for mine." Amoscandar growled, but it was more of a complaint than a warning, and Lionel did not stir. "Called the foxkind, we are. Long-lived, far from death...and yet we understand death, and life, and the Truths of everything, bound together into one long, short existence. We can petrify our foes with a glance, burn them with a thought, crush their minds will nary a flick of our tails. I can see the distortion in a Mystery Dungeon, I can write in Unown script and more, I can..."

He sighed, trailing off. Lionel's shiny black eyes opened and gazed at the Captain.

"All these things I can do... all this power I am said to have... And yet the Master sits comfortably in his castle still."

* * *

Lionel took a deep breath, ready to continue talking, but realized that the sound of the Vulpix's breathing had deepened and slowed. The Captain turned around and saw Zona curled into himself, four tails covering himself up like a blanket.

The Captain considered waking him up and telling him to head back to his room, but decided against it. With a small smile, Lionel turned and trailed into the doorway that lead to his own sleeping quarters.

Behind him, in the dull red light, Zona murmured "Daddy..."

* * *

**The Next Day**

"Zona..." started Ray over breakfast, reaching across the table and tapping Zona's muzzle. With a small yelp, the Vulpix shook his head and looked up. "You okay? You look kinda out of it."

"Didn't...sleep well. Dreams." he muttered, turning back to his food.

"Dreams?" Ray asked. "Bad dreams? I heard you yelling..." Zona didn't answer. "You never returned to the room, though. Did you...?"

"Fell asleep in the briefing room," continued Zona instantly.

"Why didn't you come back, though?"

Zona carefully picked up the fruit in his jaws, and focused on chewing it, admitting to himself deep down that he'd rather go back to his parents' carnivorous diet. Eventually, Ray got the hint.

"Still, man... Everyone heard you shout." Ray's ears fell slightly. "It's not healthy, Zona."

Zona's eyes focused on his plate.

"Keeping yourself sealed up like that." Ray huffed when he realized Zona still wasn't paying attention, and slung his tail over the table, prodding the Vulpix on the nose. Zona started as though surprised. "You sure you got enough sleep?"

"Y-yes... I'm fine." He sighed. "And... I know, Ray. I know I can't...keep it all locked up." Zona didn't speak for a moment. "It's just... who would understand me? I...I am what I am, but I don't even know what that means..." _What am I saying?_ he wondered silently. _Why do I believe myself to be so...special? I don't want to be special..._

"Do you honestly think your problem's that unique?" Ray smiled gently. Zona cocked his head. "Keep in mind, there are a lot of training teams around the base and, besides, some regular teams will take kids like you (no offense) straight off. Your town wasn't the first the Master tore apart like that, and I'm sure you'll find a kindred spirit if you look hard enough."

"Maybe..." muttered Zona, gazing through him. "Maybe..."

* * *

**Past Midday - Team Stripes' Quarters - Common Hall**

"Team Stripes! In _order!_"

The Captain's usual cry was in this instance a mere formality, as the Team was already mostly in order. The talking and restless movements stopped, and beside Zona, Zeven tensed.

"Senior Cadet Zeven!" barked the Captain.

"Yes, Captain!" cried the Sneasel.

"Step forward!"

Smoothly, as though he had practiced, Zeven stepped backwards out of formation, turned to his left, and began to walk around the assembled team. Feeling that he was ruining the flow of the pattern, Zona stepped sideways, standing beside the next Pokémon, which happened to be the Meowth.

After several seconds, Zeven apparently reached the front of the room, because Lionel's voice rang out again: "Senior Cadet Zeven, Sneasel, son of none, born feral in the wilds of the north six years ago."

"As you say, sir," came Zeven's voice.

"You have been a member of Team Stripes for three years, since you gained sentience, and have served the team faithfully for all of those years."

"Thank you, Captain."

"Our records indicate that in these three years, you have been on a total of six-hundred and sixty missions. Of those, five-hundred and two missions were counted as success according to the Division." Zona heard the Captain inhale and exhale sharply through his nose. "You have more than proved your ability, and it is our joint opinion as heads of Team Stripes that you will better serve the Division on a proper team. Therefore, by the rights vested in me as Captain of the Team, I pronounce you graduated, a full-fledged member of the Great Amberan Resistance."

"Thank you, s-"

The rest of Zeven's words were drowned out as Team Stripes broke formation, cheering and surging forward, gathering around the Sneasel, praising him and offering congratulations. Even Zona found himself on the edge of the crowd, quietly offering his own congratulations.

The Captain didn't seem to have the heart to break up the revelry. Insead, he cried over the tumult, "We now grant the title of Senior Cadet to Ray!" Which only, of course, caused the crowd to split, with one half surrounding Zeven and the other-Zona included-surrounding Ray.

He realized with a sudden, terrible lurch what he'd done-rushed forward without thinking, as though he were an innocent kit stepping unwittingly in front of a Tangela. But he was not stopped: none of the cadets in either crowd turned and mocked him. Indeed, he noticed Cirrus looking at him with a big grin on her face, gesturing at him to come forward. She said something-he saw her mouth move-but he couldn't make it out.

Still, he stood there for a moment, uncertain. The Squirtle raised her voice.

"Zona, come _on!_" she laughed.

So he did, without being quite sure why.

* * *

It took several minutes, but eventually the Sneasel managed to pull himself free from the crowd. Zona spotted the flash of Zeven's rose-colored right ear out of the corner of his eye, and turned toward him. The members of the team that had been gathered around him decided it was their turn to congratulate Ray, and Zona had to rush away or risk being trampled as they moved toward his side of the room. He ended up tripping over his left foreleg, and tumbled over against the far wall.

Within a few moments, he heard Zeven's sharp laugh, and two cold paws wrapped around his middle and helped right him. He turned toward the Sneasel and mumbled his thanks as the Ice-type drew out his claws again, grinned, and ruffled Zona's curls.

"I'd have liked five-hundred and three, but, eh," he said, shrugging. "You win some, you lose some. Hey, man," he continued as Zona looked down. "Don't feel bad, Zona. We all screw up. 'Sides, I won't fault you for being terrified of Ghosts. Pretty smart, actually. And anyway, who's to say we'd have succeeded either way?" Zeven shrugged again. "I said we'd go for a walk, right? You still wanna?"

Zona flattened his ears. "It would be nice... The noise is starting to get to me..."

"Alright, then!" Zeven laughed. "I've got a great idea. Let's go!"

* * *

Once again, Zona looked up and down the plain brownstone walls of the base and wondered how anyone knew where anything was. Apparently, Zeven did, because the Ice-type had been leading him purposefully down what had to be the fourth or fifth hall since they'd left Team Stripes' quarters, and he guessed they'd gone down at least two floors. The halls down here were crowded, young Pokémon-members of the other grounded training teams, he surmised-wandering up and down, some with purpose, others aimlessly.

He kept his gaze fixed on the Sneasel, wondering where he was being taken. With a start, he remembered what Zeven had said the other day-about talking with Eli. But there had been something...off in the way he'd said "talk." As if he meant more than that.

Zona shivered in the Ice-type's wake. He hoped Zeven knew what he was doing.

Within six minutes, Zeven drew up short beside another identical door. He cast a glance behind him and saw Zona slowly pad up to his side. With a mischievous grin, the Sneasel raised one of his paws, retracted his claws, and knocked on the door. It was promptly opened by a Zangoose.

"Zachel," greeted Zeven, smirk still plastered over his face.

The Zangoose merely cocked its head, staring blankly at the Sneasel.

"Me and Zona here are looking for a Machop, I think he joined your team a few days ago..."

"Eli," rasped Zachel.

"That's the one."

"What're you planning on doing to him?" asked the Zangoose warily.

"Oh, you know..." Zeven began to sharpen one of his claws with the other. "...Have a bit of a chat."

"Zeven, the last Pokémon you 'had a chat' with didn't get out of the Medical Ward for two days." The Zangoose radiated disapproval-which promptly vanished as a grin split her face. "He's got it coming. One sec, I'll go get him." She turned and headed back into the team's quarters.

"Stand back a bit, will you, Zona?" said Zeven, staring straight ahead. Zona did as he asked, stepping slowly back, uncertain what exactly the Sneasel had in mind. The Sneasel himself flattened against the wall on the far side of the door.

Inside a minute, the door to Team Carrier's chambers slid open and Eli stepped out. He took a look toward Zeven and apparently saw nothing, but when he looked the other way he instantly spotted Zona. "Hey, Zonaferior." He adopted the annoying swagger he always had when mocking the Vulpix, stepping toward him slowly. "What in Ambera d'you think you're doing down here? Why do you think I'd wanna see your ugly face again, huh?"

Zona stepped back, eyes narrowed, muzzle shut. What was Zeven planning?

"Yeah, see, you're running. Why'd you even come if you're just gonna run away?" He raised a fist and mock-punched at Zona; despite himself, the Vulpix flinched.

"Coward. Coward. What, did you come down here to prove something, wimp? I'll-"

Eli froze. Zona noticed that Zeven, despite not having seemed to move, was now behind the Machop.

"No, he didn't come down here to prove anything," came Zeven's voice menacingly from behind the Fighting-type. Eli spun around, ready to attack on reflex, but Zeven stepped smoothly backwards out of his reach. He stepped sideways as the Machop punched hard enough to throw himself off-balance and shoved him so he staggered up against the wall. Zeven raised on set of claws up to eye-level.

Zona, who thought he knew what was coming, covered his eyes.

_Khhk, khhk. _It sounded like something sharp impacting the wall.

"I did, though."

Zona opened his eyes. Zeven had Eli pinned against the wall, one set of claws splayed just wide enough to go around the Machop's neck. The points were buried at least half an inch into the stone. For all his talk earlier, Eli seemed terrified now, and Zona heard him struggling to breathe.

"Are you paying attention?" There was an awful, dark fury burning in Zeven's eyes. "_Are you_?"

"Y-y-yeah..." stammered Eli.

"Pay closer attention," growled the Sneasel. "Zona, come here."

Shaking, the Vulpix did as he was asked, standing behind the Sneasel. Somehow, he seemed even colder than usual.

"See this Pokémon? _Do you see him_?"

"Y-yeah! I see him!" whined Eli. "Pl-please, let me go!" In his fright, he had forgotten that he could probably tear Zeven's arm off if he really wanted to. That ignorance was probably part of the plan.

"His name is Zona," continued the Ice-type in the same awful voice. "Zona_phèras_. Say it."

"Z-Zonafe-"

"_Say. It._"

"Zonaphèras..."

There was no doubt about it, now. As Zeven continued holding Eli against the wall, the air around him was becoming increasingly cold. Zona could see his own breath now.

"Now..." At last, the voice lightened, but only slightly. Zona could still hear the malice in every syllable. "Zona happens to be a friend of mine. I've gone on a mission with him, I've talked with him, I think he's pretty cool. Coming from me, that means a lot."

Eli was nodding helplessly.

"I'm not on his team any more. I just graduated to a real team. That means, pretty much, that the newest, slowest, weakest member of Team Dread is the one holding you against the wall right now. Let that sink in for a minute." Zeven was silent for a moment. "So. Because I can't keep any eye on him anymore, if I hear so much as a whisper of a rumor that you have so much as _touched the fur on Zona's head_, you will very shortly be full of very, very fine holes."

Eli's eyes were tiny pinpricks. "B-but... You c-can't..."

The air screamed in protest as Zeven's other set of claws tore through it. Eli cried out in terror.

_Khhshk!_

These claws were buried even deeper than the ones holding Eli in place.

"Don't you _dare_," breathed the Sneasel, "tell _me _what I can and can't do."

_Sshhkh_. Both pairs of claws were drawn from the wall. Whimpering, Eli fell to the floor, clutching protectively as his throat.

"We're done here," grunted Zeven, turning and walking away. The cold air followed him: as Zeven moved further and further away, Zona was able to stop shivering; he shook himself off, unnerved. He looked meekly over at Eli: the Machop was staring back at him with fear in his eyes.

"I'm-" He hadn't made noise the first time: the words had caught in his throat, and he'd choked. He tried again. "I'm sorry. I didn't... I didn't know he..."

Eli's expression didn't change. After it became clear that he'd get no response, Zona trailed off after Zeven, tails dragging in the dust and ears down.

"You didn't have to do that," he called weakly to the Sneasel after they'd gone up a flight of stairs. The Sneasel's rose right ear twitched, and the glare he sent over his shoulder carried enough weight to stop Zona in his tracks again.

"Yes I did," said Zeven in a strangled voice.

"I...I've dealt with him my whole life," insisted Zona. "I was used to it."

"Don't be used to it. Don't let Pokémon walk all over you." The Sneasel was looking forward again. "That's...what they did to me, when Team Absolution brought me back. 'Oh, he's wild, let's pick on him! He won't remember!'"

The cold was radiating out again. Zona took a step backwards, and almost tripped down the stairs.

"I remember every one. I've gotten them all back. All the bullies-all the _punks_ who think they're better than someone else because they're stronger, or, or older. When I saw _him_, picking on you, and you just...just standing there, taking it... I thought about myself, and all the training, and all the discipline to become a rational Pokémon, and how dull I was before then. I remember their voices, their faces...

"I can't stand it..."

There was silence in the hall. Zeven was standing rock-still, looking away from Zona and at the wall. A fine, wafer-thin layer of frost had coated everything within three feet of him. The Vulpix could only stand, one rear paw braced on the downward staircase, muzzle slightly open.

"Zeven, I-"

"Don't."

Zona shut his mouth.

"Don't...say anything. I don't need anything. Just... you can find your way back to Stripes' quarters on your own, right?"

Zona felt there was something he should say, something he could do to make the Sneasel feel better, but all that came out when he opened his mouth again was "...Yes."

He trailed past the Sneasel and onto the next staircase. Once, he sent a glance back down, but, while he could still see the firelight reflecting off of the frost, Zeven was nowhere to be seen.


	6. Chapter 6

Be aware: I will be unavailable starting from Sunday, June 20th, to the following Sunday, June 27th. So any attempts to reach me will fail, and I will not be able to reply to reviews sent after today… At least until the 27th.

As a disclaimer: Leo, Char, Saura, Taka, Ray, and numerous other characters, as well as the setting of the story, as well as the events of the story insofar as they interact with _Silver Resistance_, belong to ScytheRider. I lay claim to only a few characters, including Zona, Lionel, Quinn, and Anise, and (so far) one setting, and that doesn't appear in this chapter. Pokémon and all related official material belong to Nintendo et al.

**Chapter 6**

It was sunset. There was a hill with a single tree upon it, at the very top. There was something up there, he knew, something important, something he needed to find. He was standing at the bottom of the hill, covered in its massive shadow, staring up at the stark figure of the tree at the top. It looked strange, that tree, he realized suddenly; half of it was vibrant and green and Oran Berries hung thick and ripe off of the branches, and the other half was barren and dead, brittle and bleak in the fading light.

_They're coming, they're coming_, whispered the voice in the back of his head. _They're coming for you, Zona_.

Yellow. Yellow eyes and a freezing touch. They'd be here soon, if he didn't hurry. He had to get to the top of the hill and find it.

Determined, he began to race up the hill, only to realize that it was much farther up than he thought. It wasn't a hill, it was a mountain: the tree was up top in the snow, and the cold.

The cold…

_Hurry, Zona. Hurry, they're coming_.

He kept running. It felt surreal, the way he was running. Like it didn't take any effort. He felt like he was flying up the mountain, the wind whipping past with a hum as though he was a Sneasel's claw, and yet the tree never got any closer. And how long had he been running? A few seconds? An hour? He couldn't tell. It wasn't dark yet: he still had time.

_Run, Zona. Faster_.

He kept running for another while—two seconds, a century—straining to reach it, straining to find what he was looking for. Slowly, agonizingly, the tree inched near him. Soon he was close enough to discern individual leaves. His gaze dropped, and he saw something he hadn't seen before: a Ninetales, sitting beneath the tree. Serene, relaxed, it stared at him with impossibly-deep crimson eyes, seeming to analyze him. Uncertain, he slowed down and came to a stop a short distance away.

"What are you looking for, Zona?" asked the Ninetales quietly.

"I don't know," he replied. He didn't. He knew it was up here, but not what it was.

"Then how can you find it?" The voice was gentle, but beyond that indescribable. Was it male? Was it female? He didn't know. It _was_. That was all he could tell.

"I…I'll know it when I see it."

"Will you?" continued the larger fox in the same serene voice. "That's what you'd like to think, I'm sure," it said kindly. "But there's more to it than what you think." It looked straight, over Zona's head and into the distance. "Whether you find it depends on them, as well."

The sun had set. Fearfully, he cast a glance behind him. Yellow pinpricks were filling the sky and racing toward him.

"Please!" he said, turning back to the Ninetales. "Please, you've got to help me find it!"

"Why?"

"Because… because…" He couldn't find the words. He knew what it was, what it did—he could feel it. But nothing was coming to him.

And then, like ashes bursting forth into full flame, he had it. A light shone behind his eyes.

"I need to find it, because it will help me—"

"Hey, Zona?"

The Vulpix opened his eyes. Already it was fading: the dream, the hill, the tree. What had he been looking for? And what had it meant? He'd been so _close_.

He inched his head sideways. In the dark blue light of the dim torches, he could see Ray staring at him from the opposite corner. The Vulpix let out an unhappy whine.

"Sorry…" whispered Ray. "I… It didn't look like a good dream. You were tossing and turning and asking for help…"

Zona huffed. "It… It was nothing, Ray." True enough: already he couldn't remember it. Had there been…a bush, or something? And a hill? "It wasn't a nightmare, at least…" And he was familiar with those, as well. From the night the Watcher had touched him onwards, he had shuddered and stuttered by day and screamed by night, plagued by nightmares of his home being eradicated, of his family vanishing and him being left alone. But Zona didn't have to worry about that nightmare any more: it had already happened. He was living it.

"Since you're awake…" Ray sounded hopeful. "Can I… talk to you?"

"Me?" The Vulpix narrowed his eyes. "Why is everyone asking to talk to _me_?"

"You're the only one awake," Ray pointed out quietly. "Be…besides, uh, you're the closest thing to impartial we've got on the team."

"Impartial?" Zona stood up quietly. "What is it you want to talk about?"

Ray pushed himself to his rear paws. "…Let's talk outside, though. I don't want to wake the other two up."

Stepping carefully around Taka and Leo, Zona followed the Raichu out into the common hall. After sliding the door closed behind him, Zona turned to see Ray tapping his forepaws together anxiously, tail whipping across the dusty floor in agitation.

"What's the matter?" asked Zona.

"Zona…" started Ray uncertainly, "how…how would you feel if I were to disappear, suddenly?"

"Disappear?"

"If…" Ray's static pouches bristled out in embarrassment. "If I were…to join another team, say."

"That's what you want, isn't it?" asked Zona slowly, still not understanding. "You told me that was your goal, to get onto Team Remorse…"

"Not Team Remorse," replied Ray almost instantaneously. "Team Ember."

Team Ember… The Charmander? The one who would be coming down here in about a day's time for a party? The _new _team?

"…Why?"

"Because…" The Raichu brushed at his static pouches. "I… I've decided I want to. I mean… _look at them_, Zona. They get to train with _Scythe_. _Personally_. It's… That's something I've never dreamed of. Even if I'd gotten onto Team Remorse, I never imagined I'd get to spend that kind of time with Scythe."

"It's not Team Remorse, though."

"No," replied Ray. "No, it's not. But it's close enough for me."

A silenced passed between them. Zona stood, mouth clamped shut, staring at the Raichu thoughtfully. Ray kept tapping his paws together and looking hopefully at the Vulpix.

"Why are you asking me?" Zona asked finally. "I'm the last Pokémon you should be asking. What about Leo? What about Evan? All the others on the team who've been looking up to you and Zeven all this time… Compared to them, I barely know you."

"I know," answered Ray. "Like I said, you're the closest thing to impartial on the team. If I'd asked anyone else, they'd be begging me to stay on the team, stay here, keep teaching them, keeping being their friend…" His ears drooped sadly. "But tonight, at the party… I feel like that'd be my last opportunity. Like I'll never have another shot at this. It's… I dunno. I wanted to ask you, though, do you… do you think I'm ready? Do you think I can handle it?"

"You…" Zona blinked. "You're serious about this." At the Raichu's insistent nod, he inhaled. "You're evolved. And… It's just the two of them, right? A Bulbasaur and a Charmander?"

"Yeah, unless they've already recruited someone else…"

"You'd give them an advantage in battle, wouldn't you? And…"

There were words dancing at the back of his mind. _I saw the look on your face just now! You were going to go talk to… So go do it!_

_Go! Talk to…! Or I'll electrocute you again!_

"Zona? Are you alright?"

He blinked, dizziness settling over him like a fog. "I don't…"

_Do you _realize _how much ... misses you?_

"Yes," he said in a flat, emotionless voice, not really sure why he said it. "Yes, Ray. You're ready for it. I think… I think you should…"

He was sinking, falling into darkness, dizzy…

…

…

"…na?" He was being shaken. "Zona, you still in there? Come on, man…"

"I'm fine," he mumbled, reaching out and pushing the other away and scrambling back to his paws. Ray stepped back, worry evident in his eyes. "I'm… I'm fine. I don't know what happened…"

"You're sure?" asked Ray.

"Don't worry about me!" snapped Zona, and immediately regretted it. His ears fell flat. "Ah… I'm… I'm sorry, Ray. I didn't mean to…" He shook his head. "I don't know why, but… Yes," he said finally. "I don't know what the others will think, but… It's important to you, right?"

"…Yes," admitted Ray, although it sounded as though he regretted saying it.

"Then… why should my opinion count? It's your decision." Zona shook his head, still feeling dizzy. "…I… I'm sorry, Ray, I've got to get back to sleep…" He turned and began to stagger back toward their sleeping chamber. "I still think… you should talk to the others about it. And the Captain…"

"Right." Ray still sounded uncertain. "…Thanks, Zona."

* * *

**Midday – Cafeteria**

"Hey, Zona…"

He turned his head at the sound of Leo's unusually forlorn voice to find the Shinx standing beside him in line.

"…Can, uh, can I…?" The Electric-type gestured toward the space in front of Zona, who looked around him. The line behind him wasn't that long, nor was the line in front of him; he must have come down for lunch at the right time, he decided wryly. He nodded to Leo, who stepped in the line in front of him.

"What's—" he started, before realizing he probably knew the answer. His ears fell flat again. "Ray… told you, didn't he?"

"You _knew_?" asked the Shinx incredulously. "You _knew _before and didn't say anything!"

"I… He talked to me early this morning, I… didn't want to say anything about it."

"He's _leaving _us, Zona," said the Shinx furiously, eyes narrowed. "He's gonna leave the team, and you didn't want to say anything? Not to the Captain? Not to _me_?"

His tails were already dragging the ground, but if they could have gone lower, they would have. "It's not… Leo, it isn't that I didn't _want _to, not like that, it's…"

"Some friend you are," snuffled Leo, facing away from Zona and sticking his nose in the air.

"Leo!" he exclaimed, starting to feel annoyed. "You don't have to act so childish about it!"

"Says the one younger than me," said Leo smugly.

"Maybe I am, but at least I don't turn arrogantly away from a friend because of a miscommunication."

"…A what?" asked Leo uncertainly.

"Because I said something wrong," clarified Zona. To his surprise, the Shinx only stiffened and stepped forward, further away from him.

"There you go with your big words again. I bet you don't even have to think about using them! I bet you think you're fancy, with your big words, and your—"

"_Leo!_" What had he done wrong? He couldn't change the way he was. "Leo… Please, I don't want to…"

But the Shinx said nothing in reply, stepping primly forward in the line. Zona realized there was quite a gap between the two of them now, and the Pokémon behind him were getting impatient. For a moment, he considered catching up and trying again to explain, but gave it up almost as quickly as he considered it.

Muttering something about not being hungry any more, he stepped out of the line and left the cafeteria.

"Hey! You, Vulpix!"

He slowed, looking around for the source of the voice. Another Pokémon came out of the cafeteria and strode toward him: a Quilava, whose tail-burner was off while its head-burner was flaring up furiously.

"I saw that!" it snapped. "What kinda Fire-type do you think you are, backing out of an argument like that!"

"A wiser one, perhaps, than most," said Zona coolly. A moment later he found himself flat on his back, with the Quilava standing over him with one forepaw angled at his throat.

"Don't you talk like that to _me_, kit!"

Zona stared back up at him, shaking fearfully as he saw the Quilava's claws gleam in the torchlight. After a moment, though, both of its burners died down and it dropped its paw, looking away from Zona. He got uncertainly back to his paws.

"…Sorry. I get miffed pretty easily," said the Quilava after a moment. "I wouldn'a done anything, I swear. It's just…"

His tail-burner lit up for a moment and then died again.

"Name's Quinn," he said, dropping to all fours.

"Zona."

"…You know, you're probably right. That prob'ly _is_ a good choice, backing outta some fights. Some of us are just a little hot-headed, not like you, with your Ember all cooped up inside." His head-burner lit up, and he grinned, enjoying his joke. "'Nyway, I saw what went down in the line. You and the Shinx are buddies, huh?"

"Well… we _were_," said Zona quietly.

"What's the argument about, then? It'll probably help to get it off your back, y'know."

Slowly, Zona explained everything he could about Ray, his position in the team, and his sudden desire to move to a different team. When he'd finished, Quinn, who was leaning against the hallway wall, crossed his forepaws and let out a thoughtful _hmmm_.

"Leo's only a kit himself, in'nee?"

"He's older than me…"

"Don't act like it, do he?" The Quilava chuckled. "You get that sometimes, wi' feline Pokémon. 'Specially when they're young. I knew a Persian once, for instance… back when she was a Meowth, by Moltres, you got her angry an' you regretted it… But I think, yeah, he's just overreactin'. He's been best buds wi' this Raichu for a long time, an' prob'ly he was assumin' he'd get to spend a whole lot more time with 'im. He feels like he shoulda' been the first one to figure out Ray's not gonna stay put, not you—'cuz he's known him longer, see?" Quinn nodded sagely. "You jus' give him time, Zona, let him simmer down a bit, an' he'll come back an' apologize."

"What if he's right, though?" asked Zona. "I mean… Even I thought that, when Ray told me this morning. Compared to Leo, I barely know him…"

"Ah, but, look, see, there's sense in that. He'd asked Leo first, he'd'a gotten nothin' but 'No, no, stay here! It'll be boring wi'out you!' He'd be thinkin' of himself, see, an' not anyone else. You… You got a good, level head on your shoulders, Zon', 'least it seems to me, an' you were pro'lly the best choice to talk to, 'side from maybe the team captain."

"Thanks," said Zona. "You aren't…so bad yourself, you know, if you stop and think things out."

"Eh." Quinn shrugged. "I guess. I'm 'bit more of a fighter, myself, but… I'unno. I been where you are, I guess. Had some petty arguments wi' my friends when I was younger."

"Thanks for your help, though," said Zona again. "I… I feel better, now."

"Glad I could be some help to ya, Zona. Sorry 'bout earlier."

"To be honest…" Zona smiled slightly, looking over at Quinn. "That was probably what I needed best. …Now I'd better go get some lunch before they stop serving it."

"See ya 'round, Zona."

"You, too… Quinn."

* * *

**Team Stripes' Quarters – Late Afternoon**

_Is he?_

_Ray's really leaving?_

_I heard Ray's leaving the team… Leo said so, and he wouldn't lie about that._

_What do you know about it, Zona?_

"_Nothing. Why would I know anything?"_

_I… I dunno. But the Captain won't say anything about it._

"…"

_You're sure you don't know anything?_

"… _Yes, he's leaving. At least… that's what he told me."_

_What did you say, Zona?_

_Ray's leaving?_

_He's really going away?_

_Zona, is Ray leaving?_

_But, but…_

"Um… Zona?"

They wouldn't leave him alone… All afternoon, all of them, all with the same question… He was so tired of them…

"What," he said flatly into his own thigh.

"You okay?" It was Taka's voice. He hadn't heard the door open, but he heard her step into the chamber and slide the door closed behind her. "You've been in here for awhile…"

He remained curled up with his eyes shut tight. The only sign that he was listening to her came from his ears, which were up and alert.

"Say… I heard Ray's leaving the team. Everyone's talking about it…"

Zona said nothing.

"Have you heard anything about it?" When she still couldn't manage to wring a reply from the Vulpix, she changed tactics. "Have you even seen Ray at all?"

"Not since this morning," he mumbled.

"No one's seen him at all today, aside from you." He heard Taka walk toward him and sit herself down behind his back—effectively beside him, if he uncurled himself. "Well… The Captain might have, but he won't say anything about it."

"Don't ask me."

"Why?"

_Because everyone else has,_ he grumbled to himself.

There was a pause, as though she were hesitating. "You never answered my first question, but… it's pretty obvious you aren't okay. What's the matter?"

Silence again.

"Zona?"

He laid his ears flat and curled further into himself.

"I'm trying to help, Zona." The Treecko sounded cross. "Why are you ignoring me?"

Silence.

He heard the rustling of what sounded like leaves as she moved. There was a split second where he felt her smooth hand touching his back, and then he decided he'd had enough. With an angry snarl he uncurled and leapt to his feet, eyes shining crimson. Taka barely had time to gasp before he had her forelimb grasped firmly in his jaws.

"Ow, ow, ow! Zona, stop! _Stop!_"

He didn't move; he growled, crouched, with Taka's arm held tight enough so that she could not move.

"Zona, you're too hot… You're hurting me, please… please stop…" There was panic in her yellow eyes.

Yellow eyes…

"Zona, whatever I did, I'm sorry… I won't… I won't do it again, I swear…"

_It's not healthy, Zona. Keeping yourself sealed up like that_.

Shaking, gasping, he opened his muzzle and stumbled backward hard enough that he fell tail-over ears and ended up on his back. He heard Taka draw in a sharp breath.

"Ow…"

Zona fell sideways, but did not move afterwards, legs stuck out at whatever angle gravity had placed them. He was still breathing hard, and he could feel the air around him cooling degrees at a time.

"Ta—" he wheezed. "Ta…Taka…"

This time it was she who said nothing.

_Kit, I tell you truly, when it comes down to it, you are a Fire-type. You may feel relaxed, you may feel calm, you may even feel happy; but the bane and the blessing of our living Ember is that it will take all of our anger, our frustration into itself and grow stronger because of it._

_But beware, Zonaphèras: it takes naught but one stray wind to turn a controlled fire into an unstoppable inferno_.

He was crying. He could feel the warm water leaking out of his eyes and falling to the ground beside him.

_They can't possibly trust me after this,_ he thought, panicking. _They'll toss me out, they'll—they'll hurt me, or kill me, I…_

He scrambled to his paws, whining unhappily, and dashed from the room so quickly that he was on the other end of the common hall before the door to his sleeping chamber had stopped sliding; and within a few seconds, wailing now, the Vulpix had left the Team's quarters at a sprint, leaving behind a great many confused teammates staring after him.

Tyson was the first to examine the room he'd run out of, and saw Taka still lying on the ground, clutching at her arm.

"Taka, what happened‽"

Grunting, she pushed herself up on her good arm before using it to grasp at her injured one again. "Zona, he almost…" She shook her head. "Never mind me for now, Tyson; we've got to catch up to him!"

"Why, what's the matter with Zona?"

"I think…" Taka swallowed. "I think… he's afraid."

She stood up slowly, looking for the first time at her injured arm. Zona hadn't broken her skin, though she could still feel where his fangs had gripped her. The outside of her forearm was brown from the heat of the fox Pokémon's breath.

"That doesn't look so good, Taka…"

"I said never mind me!" she snapped, and Tyson took a step back, surprised. "My body will heal just fine on its own, but if we don't catch up with Zona..." She shook her head. "Tyson, I'm afraid he might do something stupid!"

* * *

**Dojo Antechamber**

It was dark down here, and quiet. They wouldn't find him here; he'd be safe, at least for a little while. He didn't know if there was anyone inside the Dojo, and he didn't care: as long as he stayed still and hidden underneath the benches, he would be safe. When the torches turned red, he'd move, he'd go up to one of the exits and wait until it was clear, and then he'd run…

Run where? To the Watchers? The very thought nearly made him throw up. He was trapped, and he knew it. It was only a matter of time before they found him and…

"Do you think you are being sneaky, little one?"

Zona yelped and pressed himself further against the wall.

"What would it be, I wonder, you are hiding from?" He looked out in time to see an orange, lizard-like head peek underneath the bench.

"Or is it a game you are playing with your team? I will not disturb you if so."

"G-g-go away, Domo," said Zona. "Please… l-leave me be…"

"Back with the stuttering?" The Charmander's head tilted in confusion. "But I was told you had overcome it."

Zona tried to shuffle away, but he was already pressed tightly against the wall.

"What are you afraid of?" asked the Charmander gently. After Zona failed to respond, he seemed to shudder, melt back into Ditto form, and then shift into an Ambipom. Domo's two tail-hands reached forward and tried to pull him free, but stopped when Zona let out a growl. Slowly, the limbs were retracted.

"I have no obligations, Zona," said Domo sternly. "I can wait here as long as you feel you must hide. Also, you are aware that should I decide to I _can _pull you out." It was not a question.

"Leave me alone."

"Ah, he speaks!"

"Sensei, _please_," Zona pleaded. "I don't want… I just want to be alone."

"The Base is big, kit; I do not think it is hard to find a place to be alone. No, what I am thinking is that you did not come here to be alone, but to hide, yes?"

It was difficult to keep denying the Ambipom's one-track mind. Resigned, Zona sighed.

"…Yes, sensei. I'm… hiding from the rest of my team."

"Some game, then, is it? To make up for your lack of missions, yes?"

"No… No game."

"Then I was right to begin with. Hm." Suddenly Zona was staring at himself: the Dojo Master had Transformed again. "You are afraid. Now… Tell me why."

"…I…"

"And come out!" exclaimed the other Vulpix again. "It is hard to see you hiding underneath the bench."

Resigned, now, Zona pulled himself out and stood, head down, in front of Domo. Hesitantly at first, and then faster and louder until toward the end the words were virtually spilling from his mouth, he explained how he'd attacked and probably injured Taka.

"And… i-it wasn't even her fault, sensei, I… I just… snapped. No one has left me alone today… 'Ray's leaving, isn't he?' 'Zona, have you heard about Ray? Is it true?' 'Is he really going to leave?'" He realized he was hyperventilating. With an effort, he closed his eyes and slowed his breathing. "It's… Everybody's asking _me_, like… like I should know."

"Do you know?" asked Domo.

Zona hesitated, and then admitted that he did.

"Then why are you surprised by others asking you?" The Dojo Master turned and walked into the Dojo proper. Zona followed, a serious expression on his face.

"Why do they know that… that I know?" Zona frowned. "Ray talked to me about it this morning, alone, and no one's seen him since. It's all because of me, again: they're treating me different because of what I am, and… and I hate that!"

"That is a strong word," said Domo evenly. "Are you sure you mean that?"

"Ye…" Zona fell silent, hanging his head. "…I… don't know, sensei. I know I don't like it, but…"

"What is hatred?" asked Domo.

Zona opened his muzzle, found he couldn't answer, and shut it again.

"…I see," said Domo, thoughtfully. "And love? What is love, to you?"

"L-love is…" Zona shook his head. "Love is… It depends on who you are. Love manifests as different things to different Pokémon—"

"Exceptionally wise, but that is not what I asked you."

"Love is…"

_I love you, Zona. You are my little pride, my joy. Your father and I may sometimes be harsh and distant, but I want you to know that I love you very much, and, despite what you may think sometimes, so does he._

"L-love…"

_When you grow older, I hope you will take after me. You are just like me when I was young: quiet, and thoughtful. You spend as much time… No. You spend _more_ time listening than you do talking. That is good. Listening and talking, used together, will get you almost anywhere._

He let out a shaky breath.

…_I hope you will take after me…_

"…I don't…" Zona squeezed his eyes shut, shuddering. "I don't know anymore…"

"Zona!"

There was the pattering of padded paws on stone. He no longer felt Domo near him, and so, alone, he refused to move, to meet the Pokémon that had called his name.

"Zona, where've you been! We've been looking all over for you!"

Zona opened his eyes slightly and looked at the newcomer. He couldn't see clearly… it was a mass of bright blue. Coolly, perhaps more rudely than he really meant, he said "Oh, why? Probably only because the Captain ordered it."

"Zona…"

The Vulpix blinked, clearing his vision, and the blur resolved itself into Leo. The Shinx looked hurt.

"Zona, no… Why would you…?" Leo shuffled his paws apprehensively. "Alright… Maybe you're still angry about earlier. At lunch. I didn't mean what I said, I…"

"I know," said Zona softly. "I… I didn't mean…"

Together, they told each other, "I'm sorry."

The Shinx giggled slightly when he'd realized they'd spoken in unison. "Alright… Good."

"Is Taka okay?" asked Zona nervously.

"She's fine," insisted Leo. "You crisped her arm a little, but she'll be okay… Hey, Zona, don't look that way," he added when Zona hung his head. "You do that so often it's starting to lose its effect. Besides, she'll be alright, Doctor Orde said so."

"I shouldn't have…"

"You should have, you shouldn't have," exclaimed Leo in a singsong voice. "I heard the Captain say once that a little regret's good, but if you drag too much of it around you'll never have any fun. Or something like that, I wasn't really paying attention." The Shinx had a smile on his face. Zona tried, and failed, to smile in return. "You look so gloomy, Zona… Come on, we've got to head back so we can get a little sleep before we're supposed to get up for the party."

"The party…"

"You know what, that's just what you need, Zona!" The Shinx bounced in place for a moment, then turned and motioned for Zona to follow. "C'mon! I betcha when the party's done you'll feel really happy! It's hard to be gloomy at a party!"

"Leo…"

"They're waiting to bring the cake up 'till later, 'cause if anyone saw it now, of course… Well, we probably wouldn't have a cake left!" Leo was already out in the hallway. Hesitating, looking around for the Dojo Master and finding nothing, Zona eventually followed. "Or, or maybe, 'cause Team Ember was out on a mission today, but they're back now… If they saw the cake, they'd probably know it was for them, or they'd ask and we'd have to tell 'em it's for them, and then the surprise'd be gone!"

"Leo…"

"But the quarters're already decorated and stuff… Well, you'd have seen, wouldn't'cha? That was done before you ran off! You know, Zona, you didn't have to do that. Why'd you do it, anyway? You weren't afraid we'd, like, attack you or something, were you?"

"Leo…"

"'Cause we wouldn't do that, Zona! Sure, the Captain'd be angry, and you might get punished, but we're not gonna, you know, all jump on you and attack you just 'cause you got angry. Though, you know, my mommy used to say that it's bad if you don't let your anger out, and I think I understand why, now."

"Leo…"

"One time, my mommy…" The Shinx's ears perked, and he finally paused and looked back. "What?"

Zona opened his mouth to talk, and nothing came out. He had been trying so hard to get the Shinx's attention, but now that he had it he felt embarrassed and uncertain.

"W-w-well… I… I wanted to ask…"

"What is it?"

"I…"

_Leo, what… is love, to you?_

"…Never mind." He looked away, feeling the Ember in his stomach flaring in embarrassment.

"What?" Leo seemed confused. "If it's important, you should ask it. And you look like you're in the kind of mood where you wouldn't even think about asking it unless it was important."

"It's nothing…"

"Zona…" It sounded almost like an admonition. Zona laid his ears flat, but still couldn't bring himself to ask the question. "You're sure it's nothing?"

"I… Y-yes, I'm sure."

"You're stuttering again," observed Leo, frowning.

"I'm… It's nothing, Leo. I'll… See, I'm over it already." The Vulpix put on what he hoped was a somewhat happy smile.

Leo looked back at him skeptically, clearly not convinced. "… Alright, Zona. If you're sure." He turned and continued walking again.

Zona stood where he was and watched him for a moment, and wished he was sure.

* * *

When they got back to Team Stripes' quarters, though, rather than immediately heading to their chamber to sleep, they were greeted by the sight of most of the team standing out in the common hall, staring at the Pokémon at the front of the room.

Ray was tapping his forepaws together and shuffling from paw to paw in the nervous manner Zona had grown accustomed to even over the short time he'd known the Raichu. Rather more stoically, Lionel was standing next to him. After another second of looking, he spotted Anise behind them, an apprehensive look on her face.

"Yes," the Raichu was saying in a wavering voice. "It's true… I've already talked to the Captain about it. And…" Zona saw the Raichu's eyes shift slightly, onto him. "…I've talked to Zona, too, as many of you seem to know already…" Some of the Pokémon turned to look at the Vulpix, who wet his nose and cringed. Most of the team remained as they'd been, looking forward uncertainly toward Ray. "I don't know how you figured that out, but…" He laughed nervously, and then fell silent as no one in the room moved.

"He's got my support," said Lionel into the silence, his gaze seeming to meet every Pokémon in the room. "He's been here almost as long as Zeven. He deserves to move on, and if he thinks he can serve the Resistance best by joining with a fledgling Team, then I'll support his decision."

"But who's going to become Senior Cadet after him?"

"Who's been here longest after him?"

"But Ray's _always _been on the team, it's not gonna be the same without him…"

"Silence!" snapped the Captain. The complaints died away.

"I'm ashamed of you. Of all of you who just spoke." It seemed to Zona that Anise's grief and disappointment were tangible, as though she'd transmitted the feelings with her voice. Even though he'd kept silent, he whined regretfully and dropped his ears. He was not the only one in the room to do so. "What makes today any different from yesterday? What makes Ray any different from Zeven?" She paused. "Really, cadets, why is it different? When you heard about Zeven you were congratulating him, cheering for him, you were genuinely happy… But the next day, when you learn that Ray is going to leave the team…"

"Um…" It was Evan. "It's… just it's a lot to take in at once, Miss Anise…" There was a chorus of agreements. "Besides, a lot of us are closer to Ray than we ever were to Zeven…"

"Why?" Anise's voice still carried that heartrending tone. The look on her face made Zona want to cry. "Why are they different? Why weren't you closer to Zeven?"

"We…" Evan seemed at a loss for words. The Meowth was the one who spoke next.

"W-well, Zeven was… y'know, kinda distant. And Ray's really friendly."

"So when the distant one leaves, you congratulate him, but when your close friend says he's going to leave all you can do is stare at him and ask if he's serious?" No one said anything. "Cadets, that's just being _selfish_."

There was the sound of paws being shuffled awkwardly across the dry floor. Ray was biting his lip, static pouches bristling.

Finally, there was a general, hesitant chorus of "We're sorry, Miss Anise," from most of the cadets.

"Me?" Anise sighed. "No, cadets, don't apologize to me… Apologize to Ray. And mean it, this time."

Louder, this time, "We're sorry, Ray."

"Good luck wherever you go, Ray."

"We're gonna miss you…"

Instantly Ray was in a better mood: a smile lit his face and his tail began to whip from side to side. "Nah, guys, it's fine. Besides, it's not as though I'll leave right away. And… Thanks, everybody." The mood of the room seemed to lighten, and now everyone but Zona was smiling. Ray noticed, and padded over to him.

"Hey, Zona…" he said hesitantly. "I… guess I'm kinda to blame for what happened with you…"

"You?" Zona frowned. "How would you be responsible?"

"Well…" The Raichu laughed nervously. "I'm the one who asked to talk to you, you know. And _somehow_—"He paused here and looked around at the other cadets, but each one, probably sensing what he was going to say, looked away. "—somehow everyone else found out, and they've been asking you about it all day. Then… Well, I heard about it from Taka. You were angry, right? Annoyed at everyone asking you the same question? That's why you attacked Taka and ran off like that."

Zona looked around. Everyone was looking at him, now, waiting for a response. He focused on Ray again, cleared his throat, and said in the clearest voice he could manage, "Yes."

"We're sorry, Zona!"

This apology had come instantly, with no prompting from Anise, and had been nearly as loud as the one that had been offered to Ray. Zona took a step back, surprised by the noise; then, slowly he shook his head. Wetting his nose again, he replied,

"No… I'm the one who should apologize… aren't I? I didn't try to stop any of you, I didn't warn Taka about my mood… I just… I just assumed that you'd be able to tell I wanted to be left alone. I was angry and a little confused why you were all asking me… I should have said something. So…

"I'm sorry, too. Especially to Taka… Where is she?"

Everyone was smiling—had been smiling, almost as soon as he started speaking. Zona looked around slowly, confused.

He yelped and struggled momentarily when, without warning, he felt a sudden pressure along his tails and back, and someone was gripping him around the middle, as though in an impromptu hug. But there was no instinct to flee, no feeling that this was an enemy. Zona relaxed.

He smelled nature. He was reminded of the sound of rustling leaves.

"Zona," said Taka in his ear. "It's alright."

Everyone was still smiling. Very slowly, Zona closed his eyes and exhaled. Then he smiled, too.

* * *

**Later**

It felt like he'd only just gotten to sleep when he felt Leo's rough paw-pad on his back, shaking him gently.

"C'mon, Zona…" The Shinx only sounded half-awake himself. "Time to get ready. We've only got a few minutes… Scythe just left to go get Saura…"

Zona stretched himself, yawning. Had he had that dream again? All that came were fuzzy images, a reminder of a feeling of desperation. He shook his head. It was gone. He got to his paws, still blinking sleep from his eyes. Leo was standing in front of him: already he seemed to be excited, with wide-open, shining eyes. The Shinx bounced in place once.

"Alright! A party! And we get to meet the team Ray says he's going to try to get on!"

The Vulpix looked around, noticing that the sleeping chamber was empty except for the two of them. Apparently figuring out what was on Zona's mind, the Shinx continued, "Yeah, he and Taka are already up and waiting in the common hall. I'm so excited, though! Aren't you?"

"Yes," Zona admitted. "But… I've never been to a party before… I'm kind of nervous."

"_Never_?" Leo seemed absolutely shocked. "Never, not once? Wow, Zona, you musta lived a sheltered life back home!"

"I don't know… Maybe…"

"Well, whatever." Leo was bouncing as he talked, and that, combined with the fact that he spoke quickly in his excitement, made it hard for Zona to make out his words. "But you shouldn't be _nervous_. It's a party! Have fun, talk to other Pokémon!"

That's right: The Charmander would be coming too, wouldn't he? He'd finally get his chance to talk to him…

And say what? he wondered. I'm glad to finally meet you, your species is so rare, and I never thought I'd get to meet one…

Suddenly he was even more nervous.

"C'mon, Zona, loosen up!" laughed Leo. "It'll be fun! Just relax and have fun!"

The common hall, when he entered it, had indeed been redecorated; he had had a paw in some of it, but due to the … drama that had unfolded that day he had not been able to help as much as some others had. Various Scarves hung from the torches, and in some places had been affixed to the walls. It took him a moment to spot, but eventually he noticed that each one had a single pawprint on it, and if read in the correct sequence spelled out "Happy Freedom Suara."

He pointed out the mistake to Leo, who reported it to the Captain, and so before very long the message spelled the name correctly.

As well, toward the back of the room stood a massive cake easily three times Zona's height. How they had gotten the cake up here in one piece, and without anyone noticing, he had no idea, and, anyway, he doubted he wanted to know.

Everyone else was already up. Some were bouncing happily in place, rather like Leo, some were milling around nervously, and he noticed Arty staring hungrily at the cake in the back of the room. After a moment of searching he located both Taka and Ray: the former was toward the front of the room, leaning nonchalantly against the wall and staring not-so-nonchalantly at the still-closed door through which Scythe and his charges would enter, and the latter, much harder to find, was hiding in one of the back corners. It was to Ray he went first.

"Ray… What's wrong?" he asked, as he approached the Mouse Pokémon.

"Nothing!" he exclaimed in a faux-cheerful voice. "Just waiting for them!"

"You're hiding," Zona pointed out.

"…Yes," Ray admitted slowly.

"You're nervous," continued Zona unflinchingly.

"…Yes," Ray admitted with even more hesitation.

"…So am I, a little," said the Vulpix, looking over his shoulder. "This is my first party, ever…"

"Yeah?" Ray didn't seem to be paying attention.

"Um, Ray," Zona said suddenly, looking at the Raichu again. "Don't worry."

"…What?" Ray blinked and looked down at him, as though he hadn't expected to hear something like that from Zona.

"It's… well, something my father told me once… 'Do not be afraid to try anything once. And try it with all of your heart. If you fail, or you are rejected, you can thus say that you gave your very best effort, and no one can fault you for that.' Even if, for some reason, Team Ember says no… You can say you tried."

Ray stared blankly down at him for a few seconds, and then his muzzle split with the biggest smile Zona had ever seen. In a flash, the Raichu had caught him up in a tight hug.

"Zona…" He seemed unsure of what to say.

"And Ray…" wheezed Zona, unable to draw a deep breath thanks to the Raichu's grip, "in case you _do _succeed and I don't see you again… Thank you for everything."

"Zona," said Ray again, embracing him even more tightly, so that Zona gasped and began to frantically push against the other's stomach with his forepaws, "thanks." He laughed quietly. "What's all this about 'not seeing me again,' though? I'm not just gonna disappear over the night, you know… I'll still be here for a few days. And even if I do get on the team, I swear, I'll come back and visit…"

"Guys! Guys!" There was the sound of the door to the hall sliding quietly closed. "They're coming! They're right down the hall!"

"Torches change in twenty seconds," came Lionel's voice. "Everyone ready?"

Ray let go of Zona, who drew a deep breath. Together, they walked out of the corner and stood in the middle of the room, along with everyone else.

"Ten seconds."

Everyone drew a collective breath.

"Five. Four…"

Everyone screamed.

"_**THREE…!**_"

There was the sound of some Pokémon on the other side of the door…

"_**TWO…!**_"

The door began to slide open…

"_**ONE…!**_"

A Charmander and Bulbasaur stumbled through the door, eyes widening in shock.

Zona inhaled. The torches turned blue.

"_**HAPPY FREEDOM, SAURA!**_"

That was it: two days had passed, and yet here Saura was, safe and sound, far underground in a location unknown to the Master, surrounded by friends and not enemies, by love and appreciation rather than hatred and arrogance. He had, officially, escaped. He was free.

And everyone, Zona included, leapt forward toward the Bulbasaur to give him a massive hug. Rather, Zona _tried_, but somehow, as he had with Zeven the day before, ended up on the outside of the group. The Charmander had graciously, and perhaps fortunately, stepped back as soon as he'd seen the rest of Team Stripes flying at his teammate. After Zona managed to get to his paws again, he found his gaze attracted to the lizard Pokémon, who paid him no mind: he was staring into the pile of Pokémon with a mix of happiness and worry.

"Congratulations, Saura!"

"No way the Master's gonna get you here!"

"We're so happy for you, Saura!"

"Congratulations!"

"Cadets!" laughed the Captain, the only one of the team who had not jumped toward Saura. "Step back, now, and give him some room." When finally everyone had pulled themselves away from the surprised Bulbasaur, Zona could see the tears rolling down his face. The Vulpix's gaze returned to the Charmander in time to see him step forward to stand beside his friend, a massive smile splitting his muzzle open and his tail flame flaring from excitement.

"Th—th—" Saura seemed unable to get the words out. "Thank you, everybody…"

"You're awesome, Saura!"

"You betcha, Saura."

"The Master's a moron, anyway. He'll never catch up to you."

The entire room slowly fell into silence, as everyone waited politely for Saura to pull himself together. More than once, the Charmander quickly snaked one claw around his bulb and gave him a quick, supportive hug.

Saura could only say again, "Thank you… so much…"

Scythe had unobtrusively entered behind the pair, and he too was smiling gently. As Saura calmed, he was the first to speak.

"Char, Saura… This was my idea, conceived shortly after our encounter with Adiel. I have been where you are, Saura: I understand the value of freedom, as I'm sure you do now, as well." The Scyther looked up and out at Team Stripes, seeming to meet each individual's gaze as he continued, "But while I was the one who came up with the idea, these are the Pokémon that put it into action. Some of them may understand how you feel; some of them may simply sympathize with you. Regardless, Saura: these are the Pokémon that thought enough of you, even though they had never met you, that they devoted their time and energy to preparing a celebration for you. Even though, for now, you may have lost the family you were born to… Let these Pokémon, and Char, be your family, the ones that love and support you."

Saura's face twisted again, as though he were about to cry, but before he could continue more motivational, encouraging shouts had rung out from Team Stripes.

"It's all cool, Saura!"

"You're awesome, Saura!"

"Yeah, let's see the Master get to you now!" This was Leo. Growling playfully, he continued: "If he wants ta getcha, he'll hafta come through us!"

"Yeah!"

"That's right!"

"Ar!"

"Can we get to the cake already‽" The sudden topic change initially shocked everybody, but soon enough laughter roared through the room and the party officially started.

Zona began to feel out-of-place almost immediately—moreso than he had—as everyone else instantly fell to conversation with whoever was nearest them. Zona had been left alone, the odd one out, which was just as well because he didn't have anything to say anyway. The entire group began to gravitate toward the cake in the back. Before he got caught up in the momentum, Zona trotted to the side of the room and simply watched the others. Saura was being shuffled from Pokémon to Pokémon, and probably expressing his gratitude yet again, but from this distance Zona could not hear. The Charmander traveled with him for a ways, but then seemed to start and look in Zona's direction.

The lizard bent down and seemed to whisper something in Saura's ear. The Bulbasaur looked surprised, but nodded after a second, and the Charmander pushed his way out of the group and toward him. Too late Zona realized he had been staring straight at him the entire time, and hurriedly looked away.

"Hey."

_That voice_…

Zona swallowed, then looked back at the Charmander, who was standing in front of him with a confused sort of smile splitting his maw.

"You okay? Everyone else is headed for the cake."

"...What?" Zona blinked. "Oh… I'm not hungry right now…"

"You sure? It smells great."

This was true, at least: though he was primarily carnivorous, the smell of tastefully-blended Berries wafting from the direction of the oversized pastry was more than a little appealing.

"Well… The line's getting long, now, I might as well wait…" Excuses? Justifications? Zona didn't even know what he was saying. Small talk did not come easily to him. He gasped. "Oh, no… I made you lose your place, didn't I? You didn't have to come over here…"

The Charmander looked a little disappointed upon realizing what Zona said was true, but he seemed to dismiss it quickly. "Nah, it's okay. I noticed you over here, and I wondered what was up, you know?"

_That voice… Why do I know that voice?_

"Hey, uh, you okay? You kinda look like you've seen a Ghost."

Zona flinched from simply hearing the word. "Don't… p-please, don't use that… that word."

"What? Oh!" The lizard looked embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"Um, and… n-no. You just… I remembered something, when you talked to me, but I just _can't_ place my paw on it… Um…" Zona wet his nose. "My name is Zona, by the way. Zonaphèras."

"Call me Char. Everybody does." The Charmander extended a claw, then let out a quiet "Oh," when he realized Zona was a quadruped. Hastily the claw was brought back down to the lizard's side.

"Why?" Zona frowned. "Don't you know your own name?"

Char seemed uncertain how to answer, looking over his shoulder at both Saura and Scythe; neither noticed: Saura was still talking with the others and Scythe was cutting the cake.

"…No," said Char carefully.

_It's nice knowing that somebody knows your name. It makes you feel happy_.

The Vulpix knew enough to realize he'd hit a touchy subject, and said no more.

"It's… uh, it's nice, what you guys did for Saura," continued Char after a minute of silence. "The party and all… Man, you should have seen him after we got back from Etcher Ravine. He was shaking, he was almost scared stiff… This is the best I've seen him in days."

"I… didn't help much," Zona admitted. "I decorated a little, but… um… things happened today, and… I wasn't able to help set up as much."

"It's the thought that counts, I think," said Char seriously. "Say, the line's thinning… You sure you're not hungry?" He made as if to go toward the cake.

Now that he thought about it, Zona _was_ hungry. Why hadn't he noticed before? Probably because of his nerves...

"No, I'll… go with you. It _does _smell good."

"So, uh…" Char seemed to have run out of things to say. "How long have you been with the Resistance?"

"Not long." Respond. He could respond: responding was easy, reflexive. And he thought he'd have trouble talking to the Charmander… "I think we arrived at the same time. Or… close enough. I remember, the day I arrived, Zev—" He stopped. Char wouldn't know who Zeven was. "…A Pokémon mentioned that Scythe had returned with a Charmander and Bulbasaur."

"Wow, so you're almost as new at this as I am," Char said wryly, as if to himself. "Have you had any missions yet?"

Zona gasped, feeling a terrible chill pass through him at the memory of the one mission he'd undertaken.

"Yes," he responded to Char's questioning look. "One. … We failed."

"Oh…" Char's face fell. "That's too bad… And then they went and banned missions for you guys…"

"Leo mentioned you had a mission today," Zona pointed out. "Did they not ban your missions as well?"

"Us? No." Char laughed. "Apparently we're a full-fledged team, so… No ban for us. Besides, since Scythe comes with us we're never in any danger."

They were at the cake now. Somewhat wryly, Zona noted that no one else had gotten in line behind him: he was last in line, as usual. Char received his piece from Anise with a quiet "Thank you," but Zona, who took the plate into his mouth, could only nod his thanks to the female Captain.

"It was nice to meet you, Zona—oh," Char broke off awkwardly, noticing that Zona could not respond. "Uh…"

Zona nodded. _You too_.

"And thanks again for all of this." Char looked around. "Aha, Saura's over there," he added cheerfully.

_Why… do I know his voice…?_

It was only after he had followed Char and found Leo, talking animatedly with a still-smiling Saura, that he realized that the Charmander was the first Pokémon he'd met in days that hadn't so much as made a passing comment to his species. As they approached, Leo broke off and looked at them.

"It was _really cool_! Like, like—Oh, hi Zona! Hi Char!" The Shinx turned back toward Saura. "This is Zona! I didn't mention him before, but he's a Vulpix that joined up a few days ago. He's kinda quiet, but he's _really really _smart, like, he uses big words that I wouldn't ever think of using."

"Nice to meet you," said the Bulbasaur. Even though he had doubtless said it two dozen times already, Zona could still tell that the Bulbasaur's greeting was sincere.

He set the plate down. "You, too."

"A Vulpix, huh? Wow!" (Zona's heart sank: apparently Char was the only one who didn't care what he was) "I've only seen one before, and even then it was only from really far away."

"I used to know a Bulbasaur…" What had her name been? Saureena? Sauranna? He couldn't remember…

_After it was all over, after the attackers had left, after he had found shelter in a hole a mile from the village and waited until the following day, he came back to the village, in the hopes, be them vain hopes, of finding survivors. Hers was the first body he stumbled upon, and the sight of it nearly made him turn tails and run again. Her body was covered by scratch marks and was leaking some sticky amber fluid (Sap? Did Bulbasaur bleed sap?); the bulb that she had been so proud of was torn to shreds and scraps of it lay around her, covered by more of the sticky sap. He didn't remember her name; he'd barely known her in the first place. Even so, because he recognized what she meant, that she was the first of many bodies he would find, he broke down and cried over her body. When the Pokémon dispatched from the Gold Division found him at noon the next day, he was still crying over a body, except that this time the body, the cold, stiff, unmoving body, was his father's._

"…na?"

"Hey, Zona, you okay in there?"

Zona started and looked up. "What?"

"You looked like you were daydreaming, and it wasn't a good kinda daydream." Leo sounded a little worried, but immediately he dismissed it. "Well, it is kinda late, I guess."

He was breathing hard. If he denied it, they would know he was lying, but he didn't feel like spoiling the mood of the party. "I'm fine… Sorry. I just… You reminded me of something."

He busied himself with his as-yet-untouched cake, and Leo continued glibly about whatever he'd been talking about before. Char said nothing throughout the whole event, apparently focused politely on the Shinx, but when Zona spared a glance up at the rest of them the first thing he saw was Saura, who was staring at him with something close to sympathy. With that single look, however, Zona could instantly tell: like he did with Leo, he shared something with this Bulbasaur. What it was, he couldn't tell, but it was there, a nagging feeling at the back of his head.

Suddenly, Zona was reminded of his family: of the father whose true wisdom he had never known, and of the mother whose villainy knew no bounds.

Gasping, trying to utter an apology, muttering something even he himself only vaguely understood about needing to be alone, he turned away and staggered across the common hall into his sleeping chamber. No one stopped him: no one, aside from the three he'd left behind, Scythe, and Stripes' Captains, even seemed to realize what was going on.

None of them bothered him for the rest of the night: after overcoming the flood of emotion—anger, fear, confusion—that had come with the sudden memory, he felt drained, exhausted, and soon he fell into a fitful sleep. The party continued without him, though Leo occasionally sent a worried glance in the direction of his room, and Saura, while still cheerful, seemed to lack the same absolute energy he'd had before they'd spoken.

* * *

_Hurry, Zona. You've got to hurry. They're getting closer…_

"You've got to help me! I've got to find it! I know what it is—I know why I need it…"

"I cannot help you. You know what you are looking for, so look for it."

"Please!" he begged. "_Please_! I can't… I can't find it on my own!"

But the Ninetales faded away and the tree was dying, and there was the feeling of an ice-cold claw grasping at him…

Had he dreamed? Already he'd forgotten.

* * *

None of the team got up before noon, but Zona slept even longer than the rest. By the time he woke up he was terribly hungry, and the first thing on his mind was to head down to the cafeteria to get…well, it would be lunch, now.

Except…

He stretched, sniffing. It smelled like food…

"I thought you'd be hungry. You didn't finish your cake last night." Leo spoke in an unusually meek voice. As Zona stood, he saw the Shinx standing a few feet from him; a plate of food was sitting on the ground in front of him. "Here…" Leo bent down and pushed the plate toward him.

Zona looked down at the food, then back up at Leo.

"What? Don't worry about me, I've already eaten." The Shinx was staring at him, and it was hard to miss the worry in his eyes.

"…Leo, what's wrong?"

"Are… are you okay, Zona?" asked Leo nervously. "Last night, when you talked to Saura… And when we all came in after the party, you were muttering and twisting in your sleep…"

"What?" Zona shook his head. "…It's nothing, Leo. I'm fine now… I can't even remember what I was dreaming about, if it makes you feel better." The Shinx's expression didn't change. "Leo…"

"Maybe you're right, maybe you're okay…" Leo looked down. "But… I remember what you looked like when I went to see you after you got back from Blackriver City. I remember… you looked really scared, and you wouldn't talk to anyone, and you didn't even notice that anyone was there, an', an'…" The Shinx snuffled. "I was _worried_, Zona, I din't know what was goin' on, an'… I dun' wanna see you like that again. And last night it looked like…"

Zona could only stare mutely back at him, at a loss for anything to say. In the silence, eventually, he fell to eating the food Leo had brought up. Sometime during his meal the little Shinx must have slipped out, because when he finally finished he was alone. When he left the room himself, he was immediately stopped by the Captain.

"Zona." The Linoone's eyes were unusually cold and distant.

"Sir?"

"Consider this your official notification: You have been assigned to a mission, to be embarked upon the day bans are lifted."

"A mission?" Zona stepped back nervously. "But, sir… Am I the right choice?"

"You're the only choice, Zona," said Lionel flatly. "I was told by Alakazam himself that you, of all Pokémon, must go."

"Why, sir? Why me? … Where am I being sent?"

Lionel looked to the side and sighed, as though he regretted what he was about to say. "I… argued with them, Zona. I told them it was a bad idea, that they should send someone else… But all I managed to do was get myself forbidden from going. Anise will have to lead the mission in my place. Zona, the reason we need you yourself to go… Well, it's because of your father's reputation, more than anything…

"The day bans are lifted, you're to be dispatched on a mission to… to Leppa Town."


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Pokémon and all related official material belong to Nintendo et al.

Material originating in _Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Silver Resistance_ belongs to ScytheRider.

Everything else is mine.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

For a moment Zona could only stare blankly back at the Captain, not understanding. He felt as though his stomach had dropped and the floor had disappeared beneath him, and he was falling, falling…

"…Sir?" he gasped finally, unable to string together anything else.

"Leppa Town. Your home town." Lionel looked uncomfortable.

"B-but…" He shook his head. "Wh-wh-why, sir? Why me, of all the s-s-survivors…?"

"I said, cadet. Your father." Lionel sighed. "It's… I don't know. It's unusually rash for High Intelligence to make such a hasty decision. I told them what you're like; I told them how you still seemed to be recovering from the whole ordeal… Eventually, I just put my paw down. I said I wouldn't take you back to that place. They agreed."

He looked away, disgust apparent in his eyes.

"Zona… You never did know that your father was a member of the Resistance, did you?"

"No, sir." Zona's voice was short and clipped: he was forcing himself to not stutter again. "I didn't even know there was a Resistance… I hardly knew anything about the Master…"

"He sure kept you in the dark," grumbled the Captain. "I wonder why he never told you…"

"He didn't want me involved."

"What was that, kit?"

_There are… things happening in the world, Zonaphèras. Fighting, and dying, and deceit. But I promise you, we are safe here: I will not let anyone hurt you._

Zona swallowed. "…Nothing, sir."

Lionel stared at him for a moment, but did not pry.

"May I ask, sir, what the mission is about?"

"I can tell you what I was told. We haven't actually been given all the details yet." Lionel cleared his throat. "Inside your chamber, if you will, Cadet. Anise has most of the others down in the Dojo for sparring, but they could be back any minute now…"

"Why did no one wake me up, sir?" asked Zona as he followed the Captain back into his sleeping quarters.

"No one woke anybody up," the Linoone grunted in response. "That's why I said 'most.' It's just that the team's used to getting up early. The ones who slept in closer to when you did are down grabbing lunch."

"…I never did thank Leo…" muttered Zona as the Captain closed the door.

"Anyway." Lionel cleared his throat again. "You already know that even though your father had retired from active duty in the Resistance, he was still sending in regular reports, every two months exactly, of anything he had picked up or heard that might be of benefit to the Gold Division. He was punctual, and he was prompt: the day the attack occurred was the day one of his letters was supposed to arrive, and when it didn't we got worried and… well, you know. You remember.

"But over a year ago he sent in a report saying that he… Let's see if I can remember the exact words. He had 'stumbled across something that may aid the Resistance, if not against the Master than at the very least those nightmarish abominations, the Watchers.' He said he still needed time to confirm whether or not it, whatever it was, would actually be useful."

"Over a year?" Zona sat, and his four tails shuddered uncertainly over the floor. "All that time, I would have remembered something, if I'd seen it. Mother said my eyes and ears opened three weeks after my Egg hatched, and I can recall things from as early as two months—or so Mother told me…"

"That's what bothers me." Lionel shook his head. "Amos was extremely careful in everything he did, to the point where you didn't know a thing about what he'd done in his life. And Miranda… well, who knows about her? No one knows if she ever really knew if he was a member of the Resistance—"

_I do_, thought Zona bitterly.

"—but even so he would have been careful. I know he was wise, I know he was clever, and, sure, if there was something Captain Amos didn't want you to find, you didn't find it. But in all that time, did you ever once see him holding something you didn't recognize, or find him in a place he wasn't usually, or doing something he didn't usually do?"

"No, sir," replied Zona after a minute of silent thought, and then added, "but you yourself said he was careful, and, anyway, all I had ever known of my father was the life he built for himself after the Resistance. I would not have known the difference.

"…I don't see what the point in sending me if I don't even know what it is I'm supposed to be looking for…"

Lionel huffed, apparently having run out of things to say. Zona was looking down again, his eyes not so much looking at the ground as somewhere, or sometime, else.

Eventually, Lionel said, "I can at least tell you this. There's no danger—High Intelligence is certain that Leppa Town has been abandoned completely and that the Master has no more interest in it. The team sent will be composed of cadets like yourself. It's a bit of a long trip there, though."

"It took us several days to reach the base when we were brought back," muttered Zona.

"But your group will be smaller this time, better-equipped, and ready. If you set out in the early morning you should reach the town by mid-afternoon."

Zona nodded slowly.

"We set up a grave marker for Amos there, you know." Lionel paused. "Or, the team that went, anyway. So at the very least you'll be able to pray over your father's grave… I know you Vulpix are very peculiar about honoring the death of loved ones…" Lionel choked, apparently trying to cut himself off, but it was too late.

Zona, however, appeared not to have been bothered at the generalization. He was still looking down, his eyes wandering left and right as though he wasn't just staring at the ground.

"Love…" he muttered, his voice cracking. He looked up, finally, meeting the Captain's gaze with forlorn eyes. He wet his nose several times, as though stalling, trying to come up with something else to say. Finally, hesitantly: "I… I understand, Captain. I will go… Though I don't know what I'll find." He looked back down. "Sir… Requesting permission to be left alone for now, sir…"

Slowly, Lionel nodded. "Granted, Cadet. I'll see that no one bothers you." He turned to leave.

"Except…" Zona's voice was shaking. There was a pause, and when he spoke again his voice was firmer, but forced. "If… If Ray comes back… He can come in…"

"Very well," grunted Lionel, and left. Zona stared after him as the door shut, the yellow torches on the wall flickering slightly and making his shadow dance in front of him. Already, however, he had driven most of what the Captain had said from his mind. What was bothering him was not what he had been told today, but what he had been asked last night.

_What is hatred? What is love?_

He asked the questions aloud to himself, but even hearing them bounce hollowly off of the walls in the empty room gave him no peace.

* * *

**Ray**

He slipped in quietly and shut the door behind himself before turning to take in the room. As he had expected: bare, except for the mats they slept on and for Zona, lying on his side in the middle of the room, tails facing the Raichu, breathing deeply. For all that it looked like he was asleep, Ray could see and feel the tension in the Vulpix's small body, and he stood uncertainly by the door for a long while, waiting for the other to speak first. Nothing came.

"You… wanted to speak with me, right, Zona?" he managed finally.

The Vulpix tensed further, and Ray heard him draw in a sharp breath. Had he really not known the Raichu was there? Regardless, even after he relaxed, Zona's silence persisted.

"Listen, I… The Captain told me what's going on," continued Ray. "I heard about what High Intelligence is asking you to do. I don't think it's fair, either."

He tapped his forepaws together nervously. The Vulpix moved slightly, and craned his neck so that he could see Ray from one eye.

"But fair or not… I think you can do it." Ray nodded vehemently. "I don't know what it is they want you to find, and I think it's stupid of them to send you looking for it when even _you _don't know what it is… But you _don't _have to be afraid about going back, Zona."

Zona's voice said nothing, but his eye asked _Why?_

"Because…" Ray broke off, thinking. "Because you've still got a family, Zona. Even if you're going back to the place where… where your father died, and your mother… did what she did… Even if you can't call _them_, your mom and dad, family any more, Team Stripes is your family. I'd like to think, even though I'm not on the team anymore…" He broke off, shuddering; the idea that he had instantly gone from being Senior Cadet to being the newest member of a new team was still sinking in. "…I'd like to think that you'd consider me part of your family, too."

"Family," parroted Zona in a small voice.

"Yes, Zona, family. I told you… You have to leave everything else, everyone else behind. You have to cut your ties with your own family. But in doing so you find a new family, a new source of love, and trust. In the Resistance, we're all we've got."

"Love?" Zona was still barely audible. "Love… and trust…?"

Ray could see both of Zona's eyes, now, and the turmoil and confusion roiling behind them made Ray uncomfortable.

"Zona, what's bothering you? Tell me."

"Love… Hatred… Trust…" Zona shuddered. "Ray…" He looked as though he were about to get up, but after a moment he gave up and fell back to where he was. Ray took a step forward, then crouched down on all fours so Zona didn't have to look up.

"What's wrong?"

Zona shuddered again. Ray did a double take and noticed that the Vulpix was crying.

"I have wondered," he murmured, "from the beginning, why you reached out to me. Why you so readily took me in, even when Taka herself was hostile to me. I did not understand anything of what you said, of family, of trust… And it took until yesterday, until I ran off and was found by Domo… It took his questions, and it took your blathering on about 'trust,' to make me realize why I didn't understand."

"Why is that, Zona?" asked Ray slowly.

"Love?" snapped Zona in a suddenly-bitter voice. "How can I define love when the Pokémon I thought I loved, and whom I thought loved me, instead turned around and killed most of my village—almost killed me?

"Hatred? What is hatred? If I do not know what love is, how can I define its opposite? Do I hate my mother? I don't know. Do I hate my father? I don't know. What is hatred?

"And trust? How can I define trust, or experience trust, when my own father _lied _to me from the moment I was born? I knew nothing about him, he told me nothing; he gave me wisdom, but any stories of his life were half-truths at best. And my mother? She, with her sweet talk and sugar-coating of the less-pleasant truths of Ambera? The only two Pokémon in the entire world that I trusted, that I loved, let me down—that is why I do not, why I cannot understand you; how you think, how you act. Your justifications. None of it makes sense to me! I am terrified—I admit it—I am scared to death that if I reach out again, if I trust again, the same thing will happen! I will be betrayed, I will be hurt!

"I cannot…" Zona snuffled. "I cannot… understand how you so easily reach out to one like me. Is my species not one of secrets? My mother is a traitor: why, then, should you consider me any less likely to betray any of you? I am broken; I am useless; I am a coward: I serve no purpose on your team. I have brought you down, I have caused you to fail, and still you reach out to me—you trust me, you have shown me what must be love even though I cannot reciprocate…"

"We _won't_ let you down, Zona," replied Ray instantly, emphatically. "You're not the only one who came into this broken and lonely and terrified of everyone else. Or did you not notice that this team consists entirely of young Pokémon like you and me?" He frowned. "What are the odds—be honest—what are the odds that absolutely _no one_ on this team had trust issues at one point?"

Zona stared at him, seething slightly.

"None of us have ever really talked about our pasts, because it never mattered to any of us. But you still hear things sometimes. Tyson—you know Tyson, right? When he first joined, he wouldn't talk to _anyone_, not even the Captain or Miss Anise. You know where they found him? Sitting on the edge of a mountain, on his own, and there were Tyranitar tracks leading away from him in every direction. They brought him in, gave him to us, and he just…stared for a long time. He'd follow Pokémon who told him to follow, he'd fight if they told him to fight. But he never spoke. He slept by himself, ate by himself… And if anyone tried to get near him, he'd just push them away.

"Vincent, the Meowth… He was a trickster. He was mischievous as all-get-out. I was never told where he came from or what his story was, but apparently that was the way he was raised: to be dishonest and to lie and cheat and steal what he could, and only ever for his own gain.

"Both of them found out very quickly that you _can't_ survive if you don't _trust _everyone else. The Master has an army, Zona, an army of powerful, evil Pokémon at his command, and they're all working together to exterminate us. But that means we've got to work together, too! My brother Rautzen… He's the reason I joined the Resistance. He's the reason I evolved, the reason I so desperately wanted to get onto Team Remorse. Zona, you offered me advice from your father last night, and I'm glad you did. Let me offer you some advice from my brother."

Zona was still staring at him and saying nothing. Taking that as an indication to continue, Ray did so.

"My bro would always tell me stories about Team Remorse and all their adventures and stuff. He told me about Scythe and his genius, and how they got to meet some amazing Pokémon, and do all this important stuff to help save Ambera. And he'd always end the stories the same way. 'Remember, little Ray, that they did it together. Not a one of 'em tried to do another's job. They all recognized their own weaknesses, and their strengths, and they worked with it. If one of us ever gets in a fix, we can always trust one of the others to show up and save us.'

"Then he'd always stand up straight and look me in the eye. He had this sort of corny pose, but it was dramatic, too. Then he'd say 'I think that's why Team Remorse is so good at what they do. Yes, they're strong, yes they've got one of the best leaders in Ambera, but their real strength comes from their trust in one another.'"

He fell silent. The enmity had left Zona's gaze; now the Vulpix just looked drained. Lying weakly on his side, he looked unusually small and weak. And he was, Ray realized with a start: afraid, as he was, to really reach out, here he was, alone. Even though over his stay he had found several friends, none of them were really friends at all—not in the real sense. Zona would always keep them at paw's length, never sure of their intent; so even among his friends he was alone, a scared, stuttering child, with emotions he did not understand and could not control tearing through him and consuming him from the inside.

The silence stretched on for several minutes, and neither Pokémon moved.

"Now, we're no Team Remorse," continued Ray finally, "but Team Stripes has just as much potential to change the world as Lucario's own team.

"Besides…" Ray bit his lower lip. "Zona, let's face it: you don't have anything else left. Your father is dead, your mother's a servant of the Master, you'll be able to see firstpaw whatever's left of your village…

"Zona, we're all you've got. And you don't want to be absolutely alone for the rest of your life, do you?"

Zona remained where he was, still as a rock, staring at him with troubled eyes. Ray didn't move either, still crouched on-level with the Vulpix, determined this time to wait for a response.

Finally, silently, the tears started to flow from Zona's eyes again, and the Vulpix broke down into gasping sobs. Ray sat back and gripped the end of his tail. There was nothing more he could say—nothing more that needed to be said. Zona would have to do the rest of the thinking and the speaking himself.

The minutes ticked by, and still Zona cried. Aside from offering small encouragements, Ray barely moved. Perhaps Zona would have liked contact, but Ray didn't want to push him; the Vulpix was already fragile, and probably wanted the space.

After a long time, ten minutes or maybe fifteen, Zona's tears stopped again and aside from his snuffling there was silence in the room.

"N-n-no," he managed finally in a tiny voice, hiccoughing. "No… I d-don't w-want to b-be alone anymore…"

"No one's asking you to change right away," said Ray gently. "Anyone who would expect you to reach out right away deserves to be taken by the Wa—deserves to be hit in the head by a rock. Go at your own pace. Get used to the others. Really reach out and get to know them, when you're ready."

"But will… will I e-ever b-be?" Zona sneezed. "I am both terrified of bonding and terrified of being alone. One must give way—who is to say I will ever change?"

Ray had to stop and think again. The longer he remained silent, the more the fear crept back into Zona's eyes. Suddenly the answer occurred to him, and he tried to spit it out so fast his words tripped over one another.

"Well, see—I mean—Pokémon—we're—"

With a growl he snapped his mouth shut and tried again.

"Pokémon aren't meant to be alone, Zona," he began, slower this time. "We get along best when we're in groups—when we have others to look up to and to base our behavior off of. So again, all you need to do is spend time with Team Stripes. We'll—they'll show you what it means to trust someone, I can guarantee it.

"Zona, you're going to be safe here. I promise."

The Vulpix started as he heard the promise, and then pressed his eyes shut and rolled over so that he was facing away from Ray again.

"There is… th-there is a part of m-me that hopes you're wrong, Ray." Zona huffed. "But… Just as big, or bigger, th-there is a p-part that is desperate for you to be right."

Ray stood back up, but now there really seemed to be nothing more to say. Just as it had on the day he'd met him, all the emotion had drained from Zona's body: he looked barren and blank. From here he could not see the Vulpix's eyes, but it was not hard for him to imagine them, dull, uninterested, brown. When he spoke, it was in a flat voice, as though all he cared about was saying what needed to be said, not how it was said.

"Thank you, Ray."

"Uh…" Ray scratched his head. "You're welcome."

There was another pause.

"Say, Zona…?"

"Yes?"

"I've been thinking… And you don't have to do this if you don't want to. I just thought it might help you open up a little. You remember, a few days ago, when I was packing up for our mission to Blackriver City? And you told me how you were afraid of the Watchers?"

"I remember."

"Well…" Ray swallowed. "I was just thinking… Your life can't all have been bad, can it? You told me you were a year and a half old. So there must be something in your life, something in your memory that makes you happy."

Zona's head turned slightly towards him. Carefully, he responded "…Yes. At least… It made me happy at one time. Now, I'm not so sure…"

"Don't worry about what's happened since then," insisted Ray. "Just focus on that moment. Relive it to yourself… Or you could talk about it, if you want."

"Talk?" Again Zona turned to face him; for the first time, however, it was full-on, and Ray could see his entire face. "I don't know… I'm no storyteller…"

"It doesn't have to be fancy," laughed Ray. "Just… tell it like you remember."

Zona seemed uncertain, but soon enough his gaze drifted to the side as he recalled the event. After a few moments, he began.

* * *

**Zona**

Neither Zona nor his mother had ever seen the sunrise, but his father had, and the words his father used to paint upon his imagination would always inspire him, always light him up with a drive to somehow, someday, see this majestic event.

"The darkness overhead seems to cringe, and a faintly pink color begins to build in the east. Ah! The color of dawn, one of the greatest colors ever conceived by Arceus. And this grand, rose color expands, brightens, and the darkness has no choice but to be driven back—against this unstoppable force, this immutable light that is bringing an end to its reign." Amoscandar's eyes were closed, but he radiated this contagious joy—this idea of unwavering faith that light would always follow the darkness—and young Zona found himself unable to keep from grinning. And why shouldn't he, anyway? The sun was warm, the weather was calm, and he was here, safe, just like his father had cryptically promised when he was barely hatched.

"I tell you the truth, kit: Ambera has seen better times. But while the darkness yet maintains its hold over her, behold! There is a light shining to the east, and dawn is but a few minutes away."

"Better times?" Zona cocked his head. "What do you mean, Father? Is there something wrong in Ambera?"

"Of course not!" laughed his mother from behind them. He spun around, delighted as always to see her. "Amoscandar, don't scare the poor child! There is nothing wrong in Ambera—how could there be? We have enough food, we leave in peace…"

"We are subject to a tyrant," said Amos flatly.

"What's a tyrant?" asked Zona.

"Come now!" Miranda chided gently. "The Master can be harsh sometimes, but his judgments are always fair and carefully thought out…"

There was a chilly silence between the two, which Zona noticed always seemed to happen when they talked about the "Master." Who was the Master, anyway? What kind of Pokémon was he? Why did his father always seem to not like him, and his mother always seemed to support him?

Curiously, he looked back and forth between his parents.

"All the same," said Amos finally, touching Zona's flank lightly. He looked over at him. "I pray for the day both of you will be able to watch the sunrise." He cast a nervous glance upward, but the sun was still high above them and shining down warmly on the town. "Aye, perhaps even the moonrise…"

"Amos," grumbled Miranda drily. "You worry too much. And why should we worry about seeing the sunrise? The world itself is beautiful in the daytime. Why should a thing look better in less light?"

"Mother?" asked Zona.

"Yes, my littlest?"

"Is it time for lunch yet?"

"I am afraid not," said Miranda regretfully. "It will be soon, however: I am going to the market to pick up the food. Would you like to come?"

"No, thank you, Mother," deferred Zona politely, as he had been taught. "I was going to ask Father to tell me a story."

"A story?" Amos feigned shock. "But it is hardly noon, kit! Stories are things for the evening, after a meal, a way to relax and prepare the mind, feed the imagination, so that one's dreams are full of wonder."

"I know…" said Zona guiltily, tracing his paw back and forth in the dust. "But…"

"Well…" Amos rumbled thoughtfully. "What would you like the story to be about? Adventure? Friendship? The lands over the sea, where humans live?"

"Actually…" Zona tilted his head back and forth. "I was wondering… Do you remember the first sunrise you ever saw?"

"The first one?" Amos smiled. "Why, that was a long time ago…"

Miranda padded past him, but at the last second turned and muttered in his ear. Amos broke off, a confused look on his face.

"No, I'm not," he responded flatly to his mate. "You are the one that worries too much, Miranda. Why should we not let his imagination soar? Certainly he can go farther in his mind than ever he could in body."

Miranda's carmine eyes smoldered slightly, but she said nothing more and continued on her way, past the two of them and out into the lane, where she turned and began to head toward the center of town.

"What did Mother say?" asked Zona curiously, staring and sniffing after her.

"Never you mind," rebuffed Amos gently. "Now… My first sunrise? My, my… How long ago was that? Years and years, it must be…"

As he began, a wind began to blow from the direction Zona's mother had taken. All sorts of smells met his nose—fruit, vegetables, meat—the smell of the other Pokémon in the village. He closed his eyes.

That moment.

The comfort of his father beside him, his deep, rhythmic voice relaxing; the smell of his mother on the wind, the best smell in the world to him, even better than the smell of a freshly-smoked vermin Ratatta; the feel of the wind blowing through his fur, making the air around him just the _perfect _temperature.

That moment.

That was when he was at his happiest. Before Eli. Before the Watchers. Before his mother…

* * *

Zona stopped suddenly and looked down.

"That sounds like a good memory," said Ray, smiling. "Keep it, Zona."

"It's hard," muttered Zona in a small voice. "It's hard… I remember being happy, but it's so hard to think about it without remembering…" He broke off again. "I'm sorry…"

"Why are you apologizing?" Ray reached out and ruffled Zona's curls. "I know it can't be easy. But it's a start, right?" Ray paused. "Remember that feeling, Zona? Remember what you felt like, when you sat there with your eyes closed, and listened, and smelled? Yes, that was happiness, but… You said you thought your mother's smell was the best one in the world. It probably is, for you. But… You were wondering what love is? If it helps, Zona, think about love this way. Love is the way you felt when you smelled your mother and realized you were happy."

Zona closed his eyes, breathing deeply.

_That moment,_ he thought. _Only that moment. Nothing before it. Nothing after it. Love is that instant…_

"…Thanks," he breathed finally, and opened his eyes. But all he saw was the empty room around him and the door to the common hall sliding gently shut.

* * *

Days passed.

Ray disappeared again almost instantly. Whatever business he had to wrap up with Team Stripes was finished, and, after another, rather more informal graduation ceremony and two hours' worth of tearful goodbyes and well-wishing, the Raichu left Team Stripes' quarters for Team Ember and did not look back.

Despite the lack of missions, Team Stripes was kept busy. Two by two (and one group of three, including Zona, since he was the odd-kit-out) they would be sent down the dojo to spar with Domo and with each other. Zona learned more about his Ember; was subject to more than one short rant from the Dojo Master (in Charizard form) about emotion and how it fed into his power.

"You're shutting yourself out!" grumbled the lizard. "You're afraid to fight—you don't even like the idea of defending yourself. Every time you spar, I see how you block your emotion out. But you cannot fight like that, Zona! The Ember _is _emotion, anger, fear, excitement, everything! Shutting your emotion out of the fight is asking to lose! Fire-types are _proud_! I am insulting your _pride_, Zona! Get angry! Now attack me!"

Even then, Zona would put only a part of himself into the fight. He would always hold himself back—terrified that he would snap again and injure someone where he had avoided doing so to Taka. But Domo eventually found a goad that worked, one that actually made him angry.

"Is that all Amoscandar's son can produce? You are inferior compared to him, you are nothing!"

He froze where he was, facing away from Domo and toward his opponent, Vincent. Despite his stillness, a growl began working its way up from deep inside him along with the sudden, uncomfortable heat that was his Ember stirring.

"Yes, Zona! Do you hear me? You are putting your father to shame! What must he think of his own child, afraid to fight, naught but a coward?"

Slowly, his eyes narrowing, he moved his head to stare at the Charizard.

"_Father… Are you strong?"_

"Look at you! You're hesitating even now!"

_Strong? … What's this, all of a sudden?_

"_Um… One of the other children, Eli…"_

"Don't hold yourself back, Zona! Holding back shames your father!"

…_What kind of strength, Zona? … Ah, Eli is the Machop, yes? Then surely you mean strength in combat…_

…_Yes, Zona. Yes, I am strong. But strength is never a thing to be taken lightly. Strength begets responsibility: power issues a mandate. To use strength for personal gain is an evil act. To use one's strength for others is noble sacrifice_.

"Attack me!" roared the Charizard.

Zona did. With a roar of his own, flame burst from his muzzle, expanding as it hit open air to form a horizontal pillar of bright yellow that engulfed the Charizard's entire torso. And it kept coming: Zona eventually stopped exhaling, but whatever force it was driving his Ember out him did not need his breath. For several seconds Domo simply stared at him, seeming shocked; then, with a single stroke of his wings he blew a current of air that dispersed the flame; the gust forced Zona to inhale, and the barrage of fire stopped.

He felt drained, exhausted. He did not know what he had done; had not known he was even capable of producing such a flame yet. This fact seemed to shock the Dojo Master as well.

"Well," he rumbled thoughtfully after a minute. "Perhaps you have right to be hesitant." He nodded. "It is said that a child Pokémon will find it far easier to master abilities which his father knows. But that adaptability is said to be even greater if both parents know the attack." The massive, scaled head tilted slightly. "Did you ever learn if your mother was able to use the Flamethrower well?"

"I don't…" Zona panted. "I don't… don't know, sir…"

"Very well." Domo sounded both disappointed and unsurprised. "I think you have exerted yourself enough for today. You may rest. Cirrus, you may come up to spar with Vincent now…"

Had he ever seen his mother fight at all? Not that he could remember. Zona stepped out of the dojo and clambered up onto one of the benches, staring off at the wall in thought.

So just what was she capable of? If she had been placed in charge of an attack force, then there was no way she could be weak…

_And she's out there, still,_ he told himself, shaking at the thought. _She's out there, and whatever she's capable of… She could be burning other villages to ash, and here am I, weak, unable to stop her… Afraid to even try_…

… If only…

If only his father was still around…

* * *

"Amos! _Amos!_"

The panicked cry tore him from his sleep. He jerked awake, slamming the top of his head into his mother's side: she had already awoke, and as he tried to struggle to his paws she pressed closer to him and wrapped her tails around him protectively, forcing him back down by pushing down with her head.

"Go back to sleep, Zona, there is nothing to worry about…"

"_Amos_!"

The door was in the opposite direction; ensnared by his mother as he was, Zona could not see who was at the door. The light creeping through the window suggested it couldn't have been later than midafternoon…

There was the sound of his father padding toward the door. "What is it, Horace?"

"Bandits, Amos! Vigilantes! Lyra spotted a big crowd of Pokémon approaching from the south, and when she tried to fly close to talk to them, they tried to attack her!"

"And now they know we are here…"

"One of them called out to her as she flew away… It said they'd be coming here and taking everything worth taking. Amos, we're so far out of the way, protection would never get here in time…"

"There is no saying the Master would chose to protect us anyway," remarked Amoscandar drily.

Above and behind him, Zona's mother huffed.

"A-anyway, Amos, you've got to come! You're handy in a fight, aren't you? We're gathering all the strong Pokémon to try and scare them off!"

"…Yes," his father replied after a moment, sounding more than a little hesitant. "I would like to think I am done with fighting, but yes, I will help you."

"Thank you, Amos! They're approaching from the south…"

"Yes, Horace. You mentioned that already. Go. _Go_, warn others; I will head to the edge of town soon."

The Pokémon standing at the door left. Zona heard his father padding back towards them.

"Miranda. Keep Zona safe."

"_You_ do not need to tell _me _to keep our son safe, Amos," grumbled his mother. In a flash she was standing, and Zona felt himself lifted into the air by the scruff of his neck.

"And you do not need to remind me of past failures, Miranda," rumbled Amoscandar patiently. Zona felt his mother's sigh blow from her nose and ruffle the curls on his head. But even as he was thus carried out from his house, he struggled to free himself from his mother's grip. For a while his father walked beside them, but eventually he broke off and began to head toward the south. As they continued—eastward, he assumed, because he could see his mother's shadow stretching out in front of him—Zona's struggles grew more desperate.

"M-M-Mother! Let me g-go!"

They were not the only ones headed this way. All of the Pokémon of the village were following a similar path eastward, at least those that were not going to take part in the attempt to turn away the bandits. He spotted several of the children, some, like him being carried by their mothers, and others walking on their own.

"L-let m-me g-g-go, Mother! I w-want to watch—"

Miranda growled slightly, and Zona lessened his attempts to escape, but did not stop entirely.

Ahead, he spotted Eli walking on his own. The Machop turned and saw him, sticking out his tongue. Zona cringed, but at the same time, he heard his mother exhale slightly—not _quite_ a growl—and Eli himself cringed. Zona knew all too well the look his mother gave him when she was displeased; perhaps it should have given him pleasure, but somehow he couldn't help but feel bad that Eli must have gotten the same look.

"Mother, _please…_"

Suddenly, she dropped him right where she was standing—stopping dead in the middle of the road and opening her mouth. Gracelessly he tumbled to the ground.

"Zona," she said in a voice that suggested her patience was running thin. "It may be dangerous. If the bandits cannot be turned away there will be fighting, and I do not want you—neither your father nor I want you to be caught up in it."

"B-but—"

"Please, my littlest, let us simply go and join the others who are not fighting in the town center. Your father will handle this."

"But I want to see…"

Miranda stared at him.

"M-mother… Pl-please? J-just once?"

"Why?"

"B-because… I've n-never really seen him fight. I w-w-want t-to. Th-that time… When he saved me from the—" He broke off. "After I…"

"I know what you mean," acknowledged Miranda gravely, seeming unconcerned about the dozens of Pokémon passing them with confused looks on their faces.

"I w-was s-so scared then, I d-didn't g-get to s-see… And h-he's t-told me all about all sorts of adventures, and f-fighting ferals, and M-Mystery D-Dungeons, a-and…" Miranda looked unimpressed. "I… I j-just w-want t-to watch…"

His mother still stared down at him with the air of someone who was sure this was going to end badly. Her muzzle had drawn up slightly, exposing the tips of her fangs, and her carmine-colored eyes seemed to be glowing slightly with suppressed emotion.

"You reynards… You are all the same. Fantasizing, glorifying battle. It is a messy affair, Zona; your father may have made it sound glorious, but there is nary a storyteller in Ambera that has a greater skill with words than he, and, believe you me, Zona, I have heard many storytellers in my lifetime. He can make anything, no matter how undignified, no matter how unpleasant, sound like the best job in the world."

Zona wet his nose, staring apprehensively up at his mother.

"Very well, kit. If you are so sure that you want to see combat so soon in your life, then I will not stop you. Would that you did not want to so easily throw away your innocence! But if you feel you are ready to see the reality of your father's stories, then come, Zonaphèras, and you will see."

Slowly, she turned and began to walk the way they had been coming from—back to the west, toward the sun. The Pokémon passing them were fewer now—most of the town had gone around them as they stood talking in the street—but still there, and now they were being treated to even greater looks of confusion. All the same, perhaps because it was Miranda, a Ninetales and mate to Amoscandar, they did not question her. Zona, disliking all the attention, stayed as close as he could to his mother without stepping on her tails, head low. They reached the point where Amoscandar had turned south and followed him.

He could not see her face, but all the same he could feel her disapproval. She had decided to allow Zona to see what would happen, but she did not have to like it. Zona wanted to feel bad, but even after his close encounter with the Wa… with _them_, he retained a subtle-yet-undeniable sense of curiosity. He wanted to really see what his father was capable of.

"We are going no closer," grumbled Miranda finally, coming to rest behind one of the few other houses in the village (aside from their own) composed of stone. "Watch, and you will see." She turned to look at him over her shoulder, and gestured with her rightmost tail that he could step out in front of the house. He did so.

The plains stretched away to the south, unevenly patched green and brown; far closer than he had anticipated, however, and far more important, were the bandits. From this distance Zona could make out the individual Pokémon, though he could only identify a few of the species: Raticate, Donphan, and—out in front, and as such he supposed it was the leader—a Mightyena. They did not seem a large group—Zona estimated perhaps fifteen or twenty. Even so, the odds seemed in their favor, as Zona could only see his father and four others, standing far closer to the edge of the village, and all of them except his father seemed tense.

Two of the defenders, a Hitmonlee and a Machoke he supposed was Eli's father, raced forward as the bandit group approached. Out of the small horde raced two Donphan, jumping up and rolling themselves into spheres; one ran the Hitmonlee down without apparent effort. The other smashed into the Machoke, who managed to get a grip on it to prevent it from spinning—until the Donphan snapped out of ball-shape, stomping on the Machoke's toes. Surprised, doubtless in pain, the Machoke let go, and his opponent backed off momentarily, and then turned and began rolling toward him again: this time the Fighting-type was caught unprepared and was knocked to the ground. He did not move again.

He saw his father's tails twitch slightly. The other two defenders, a Venusaur and a Wartortle, seemed to back away.

Amos, however, did not so much as flinch as the bandits approached. The only movement he made was to look over his shoulder slightly and say something to the Wartortle, who seemed skeptical, but nodded. Zona's father looked forward again.

Though they had been moving at a fair speed as they'd come—and hadn't slowed even as the two Donphan attackers had taken down the Hitmonlee and the Machoke—the small horde slowed as they neared Amoscandar, eventually coming to a stop mere body lengths from him, and close enough that Zona could see their eyes.

The Mightyena stepped forward.

"Outta the way, y'blonde-furred pretty boy, a'fore we run y'down, like we did yer Fighting-type buddies back there."

His father's reply was too quiet to hear.

"What's that? Defeat _us_? There're three of yeh, and one's naught but a child! I think the odds're soundly in _our favor_, i'n'at right, lads?"

There was a chorus of rough laughter and agreement from the horde.

"Yeh'll need more'n yeh've got t'fight us off, fluffy. In fact, ye'd probably need a small army!"

Again, his father's voice was too soft to pick up.

"Oh, is that _right_?" drawled the Mightyena, voice dripping with sarcasm.

Amos nodded gravely. The Mightyena's eyes shifted—and with a terrible lurch Zona realized he'd stepped out too far, had come toward them unknowingly as they spoke. The Mightyena was staring at _him_.

"_Zona, get back here, now!_" whispered his mother, too late.

"Well, looks like yer _pup_ there shares yer confidence, foxy. I hope fer _his _sake you can back it up!"

A Raticate leapt from the main body of the horde, racing toward him. Terrified, he could only watch as the rat grew nearer and nearer, teeth gleaming in the sunlight—

In a flurry of golden fur Amoscandar was there, ruby eyes shining as he leapt on top of the Raticate, which collapsed instantly under his weight. His father was biting at it viciously, small tongues of flame slipping out of his muzzle as he did so. The Raticate was screaming, and Zona could see panic in its eyes, which was suddenly extinguished as Amos sank his fangs into the back of its neck.

Its eyes instantly became lifeless and dull, and the screaming cut off with a suddenness that made Zona's fur stand on end.

"If you had not struggled, it would have been a painless death," he heard his father lament quietly. He looked up in time to see Amoscandar staring at him with the blank expression that usually meant he was holding back fury. Shaking, heart racing, Zona dashed back behind the house and was immediately cuffed so hard by his mother he fell tail-over-ears. He ended up flat on his back with his mother standing furiously over him.

"_You fool_!" she hissed. "I had hoped you had more sense than to _walk toward them_!"

"M-Mother, I—"

"_Silence,_" she snapped, disgusted, infuriated. "We will discuss this after your father has finished here."

She turned away, and he rolled back to his paws, still shaking. His mother was facing east, away from Zona and away from what was occurring at the edge of town. Cautiously, Zona peaked around the edge of the house in time to see his father settle back in the same spot he'd been before. The horde was restless, staring at the body of the Raticate and shifting around uneasily, as though worried. The Mightyena, however, simply seemed impressed.

"Alright… Yer fast," he acknowledged. "And… strong, too." He smiled toothily. "But no matter how fast you are, we outnumber you."

With a roar the horde surged forward; the Venusaur, apparently panicking, threw Razor Leaves everywhere, mostly missing the horde. The Wartortle, apparently in agreement with whatever Amos had said before, stood his ground.

He saw his father breathe in deeply, and then his mouth opened and he exhaled with a _whoosh_ that was audible even from Zona's position. The air leaving his mouth shimmered violently with heat.

_**FAWOOOOSH!**_

The ground in front of the still-advancing horde burst into flames: more than half of them were carried through due to their own momentum, the Mightyena among them. On fire, now, they all panicked, turning and running back the way they'd come, back through the fire. The Wartortle pursued them, powerful jets of water shooting from its mouth, enough to put out the flames and exacerbate the burns that had already been inflicted. All but one of the horde turned and ran.

This last one was a black creature with dark-red eyes; he would learn later that its species was called Umbreon. It alone had held back while the rest of the bandits had begun their dangerous charge against Amoscandar; Zona could see the craftiness in its eyes, but also the wariness: _this_ was a tough opponent, it seemed to be thinking. _This_ one was clever.

Cleverer that it, it would learn to its horror.

It rushed toward Amos, attempting to go for the Ninetales' longer legs, and Amos crouched to block it; but that was a feint on the Umbreon's part, as it leapt up into the air, claws splayed, trying to fix itself on Amos' back.

In a flash of gold the Ninetales twisted around, leaping into the air and grabbing the Umbreon by its throat; pirouetting with an almost inappropriate grace, he threw the Dark-type to the ground. It hit with a sickening, bone-crunching sound, and did not move again.

A terrible silence.

Amos stood over the unmoving Umbreon, his eyes dimming back to their normal ruby color; he looked down at the broken Dark-type, shaking his head.

"What chaos has descended upon this world…" he lamented sadly. "Even in this so-called peacetime, even after I have turned my back on battle and wars and bloodshed, I am not given the peace I seek…"

He sighed, once. Then, slowly, almost reverently, he bent down and took the body of the Umbreon into his mouth. Just as slowly, he padded over to where Zona and Miranda were standing. Hastily the Vulpix jumped back to stand behind his mother, but he knew it was too late—nothing escaped his father's attention.

Amos stood in front of them for a long, eerily silent moment, the already-cooling Umbreon in his jaws. Then he dropped it at Zona's forepaws.

"Your dinner," said Amos gravely. Zona could not reply, shaking, staring up at his father, expecting another cuffing or worse. But nothing came. "Miranda, if you will help me with the Raticate, we will bring it home and eat it ourselves."

"But—but—"

"What," said his father flatly.

"This is… t-t-this is a P-P-Pokémon…"

"We are carnivores. You have eaten meat before: why should it bother you know?"

"It wasn't f-feral," breathed Zona. "It c-could th-think. I c-could t-tell…"

"Yes," said Amoscandar.

But Zona, though he was starving, did not eat it. It was brought home, as was the Raticate, but while his parents gorged themselves on the large rodent, he went hungry, staring at the Umbreon's and shaking.

If that was what it meant to fight, then…

He was not punished, for all his mother had insinuated that he would be. At least, he was not physically punished. But later on he recognized why: the shattering of the illusion, the wrecking of the idealism of the stories he had heard from his father, was punishment enough. He had learned the way the way Ambera truly worked, and he would never be the same, not if he lived to be a thousand.

When he woke the next morning, it was to his mother gently nuzzling his back. He uncurled himself, whining as his stomach protested irritably that he hadn't eaten. There was a smell in the air—there was the smell of the cold, dead Umbreon, which was gone from the place he had left it last night. There was another smell, though—the smell of freshly-dead, freshly-cooked meat.

He turned toward his mother. Lying in the ground in front of her was a small mass of meat, the source of the wonderful smell. He looked up at his mother apprehensively.

"You did not eat last night. I… do not blame you."

Zona looked back down at the food.

"It is vermin, I swear to you. An unthinking, feral creature."

He continued to stare at the meat, unmoving.

"Eat," insisted the Ninetales gently, nudging it forward with her nose. Finally, unable to help himself anymore, he pounced upon it, tearing into it hungrily. As he ate, he felt his mother nuzzle the top of his head gently.

"I love you, Zona," said Miranda quietly. "You are my little pride, my joy…"

She hesitated.

"Your father and I may sometimes be harsh and distant, but… I want you to know that I love you very much, and, despite what you may think sometimes, so does he."

He looked up at her silently, bits of meat and grease clinging to his muzzle. Instantly, with a familiar gentleness, she bent down and began to clean him with her tongue. He inhaled, smelling his favorite smell in the whole world…

"I love you, Zonaphèras."

* * *

**Gold Division – Zona's Chamber**

He woke up terrified.

He _had _been dreaming, he knew it. A mix of old memories, and… something new. That same dream he'd been having since the night of the party. Running, running, always running—aiming for the top of the hill, the enigmatic Ninetales, the tree…

…And the _thing_. That _thing_, that… idea, hanging on the edge of his consciousness, just far enough away that he could never _quite _recall…

"Zona…"

Stiffly, he uncurled himself and looked over at Leo. The Shinx was looking at him, worry evident in his eyes.

"Today… today's the mission, isn't it?"

"Yes," replied Zona.

"…And today we find out who's going with you."

"I hope you do," said Zona sincerely.

"Me, too." Leo chuckled. "Well, haha, maybe if I do I can help keep you safe!"

"I'd like that."

"Me, too." Leo's face fell. "But, well, we'll see…"

"_Team Stripes!_"

"Here we go," said Leo, determined, pushing himself, to his paws and marching out into the common hall. After taking a deep breath, Zona followed.

* * *

"And as you know, today is the day we are finally allowed to resume missions," Lionel finished.

"Alright!"

"Back in action!"

"The Master better watch out, we're loose again!"

"Yes, yes, I know you're all excited…" Lionel grumbled half-heartedly. "But before you disperse, there is something else that needs to be taken care of. There is another mission that we, as a team, have been assigned. Any of you who haven't already signed up for a mission were eligible to be picked for this one… Anise, since you'll be leading the mission, will you call out who you need?"

The Ambipom stepped forward. Her usual cheerful expression was gone, replaced with a neutral one that nevertheless managed to convey hope and determination.

"Would those of you whose names I call please meet me up front after we disperse?"

Zona held his breath.

"Leo, Cirrus, and Zona."

_That's… it?_ With Anise, that would make only four of them. Was there not a fifth Pokémon going? Perhaps a smaller group would allow them to travel more quickly. He would be grateful for that, he decided silently; the faster they could get in and get out, the faster he could move on from… there, the better.

"That's all for today. Those of you going on other missions, get to it," ordered the Captain. An excited buzzing filled the room as the cadets all began talking at once and dispersing. Zona trotted forward toward the front of the room, with Leo catching him up about halfway. The Squirtle, Cirrus, was already standing dutifully by Anise.

"I made it!" exclaimed Leo cheerfully. "Now we're finally going on a mission together!"

"Yes," agreed Zona absently.

"…Well, I guess it's not the best mission in the world," acknowledged Leo, and not for the first time: he had said something like this every time the mission had been brought up over the last week and a half. "I know if I had to go back to… Well, I—I mean… I guess I can understand how you feel."

"Good morning, you two," greeted Anise cheerfully as they approached, genuine, contagious smile back on her face.

"Good morning, Miss Anise!" replied Leo, bouncing excitedly.

Zona simply nodded in reply. One of Anise's tails snuck under his muzzle and gently moved his head up so he was looking her in the eye.

"You're all right, Zona?"

"Yes, Miss…" he replied hollowly.

Her face fell. "No… You aren't ready, Zona. I can tell."

"…It doesn't matter," he mumbled. "I don't have a choice."

Anise sighed, but didn't seem to have a reply.

"Are we the only ones going, Miss Anise?" asked Cirrus eventually. "We're one short from a full team."

"We had a volunteer from Team Carrier," answered Anise, dropping her tail. Zona instantly looked down again. "I think you'll know him, Zona, he also came from your village. When he heard about the mission… he said he felt like he 'owed Zona' for something. A Machop?"

"…Eli." Zona's voice contained no enthusiasm. Leo growled when he heard the name.

"Yeah, Zona's told me about him, he's no good. He better watch it! If he hurts Zona, I'll—"

"Enough, Leo," said Anise quietly, reaching out and stroking the Shinx's head. Immediately he sat and began to purr. "I made all the preparations this time, so we're all set. Cirrus, would you go into the conference room and grab the green bag? That will be ours."

"Yes, Miss," said the Squirtle obediently, doing as she was asked.

Zona heard her come back. As she did, he felt Anise's tail gently stroking the top of his head, too; as much as he would have liked it to, it gave him no comfort.

"We're to meet Eli at the northeastern gate. And the sooner we go, the sooner we can come back… It's a long walk to Leppa Town from here."

"Northeast?" echoed Zona curiously. "But… it's to the south… isn't it?"

"Southeast, yes," answered. "But the northeast exit gives us almost a straight path, even if it is a little longer. If we took another exit, we'd have to go around a Mystery Dungeon."

"A Mystery…?" He didn't remember any Mystery Dungeon while he was being escorted to the Base in the first place "… We must have avoided it on the way in."

"Yes." There was a pause. "Anyway, thank you, Cirrus, I'll carry it for now. Shall we be going?"

He trailed behind the other three, only half-paying attention to them: his thoughts were wandering, both into the uncertainty of the immediate future, and the confusion that was the past.

Had he changed at all over the last week? He'd like to think he had. The day Ray had left, he had begun to drive himself—very nearly against his own will—to interact with the others, to reach out as Ray had suggested. At first he didn't make much progress: certainly he was welcomed with open arms, but there was no way he could reciprocate the feeling. So for the first few days, whenever he wasn't training, he would trail slightly behind the first group of cadets that caught his eye, or else he would be met outside his chamber in the morning by an excited Leo, bouncing in place, and be dragged off by the Shinx to join one group of cadets or another in whatever activities they had planned for the day.

Those first few days were torture.

_He didn't know where in the base they were, but the room contained little but a ramp leading up to a ledge about thrice-and-a-half Zona's height. Aside from them, it was empty. There were four of them there, counting Zona; he had been brought along by Leo, Cirrus, and Tyson. Without explaining anything to the Vulpix, at least at first, Leo scrambled up the ramp and Tyson stood at the end of it, looking up with a determined expression._

"_What's going on?" asked Zona to Cirrus, who was standing about halfway between him and the ramp._

_The Squirtle simply smiled at him and said, "Watch."_

"_Ready?" asked Leo. Tyson mumbled an affirmation. Without missing a beat, the Shinx inhaled, closed his eyes, and tumbled off of the edge, to be caught without effort by the Larvitar._

"_Alright!" exclaimed the Shinx happily as he was set back on his paws. "Good job, Tyson! Okay, Cirrus, your turn!"_

_The Squirtle giggled and dashed up the ramp as Leo trotted back towards him._

"_What's… what's going on, Leo?"_

"_Well, this is something Ray showed me when I first came to the Resistance, and I think it's pretty fun. All you gotta do is go up the ramp, and then close your eyes and fall off!"_

"_Fall?" Zona shook his head. "But that looks like it would hurt…"_

"_That's why Tyson's there, though, silly!" admonished Leo, as though it was a simple idea to grasp. "He's really heavy for his size and really strong, so he always catches us before we hit the ground! Of course, if Tyson ever wants to jump we'd need to find a stronger Pokémon, 'cause if he jumped on _us_ he'd squish us flat!"_

"_But… what if he doesn't catch me?"_

"'_What if,' 'what if'," parroted Leo, putting on a respectable imitation of Zona's voice. "You're always talking about 'what if,' Zona. Sometimes there doesn't need to be a 'what if.'"_

"_But… but maybe he won't…"_

"_He _will_, Zona," insisted Leo seriously. "He's good at what he does. You'll be _fine_." He paused. "That's… kinda why I brought you along, Zona. 'Cause I want you to be able to reach out to other Pokémon, 'cause… 'cause you seem so lonely all the time, Zona, even when there's lots of us around, and…" He shook his head. "Anyway, I think Tyson's waiting for you, Zona! It's your turn!"_

"_But—"_

"_Nuh-_uh_," interrupted Leo, nudging him toward the ramp. "Enough 'buts,' Zona, just get up there and try it!"_

_With a shock he felt Cirrus place a claw on his back and begin to gently force him toward the ramp as well; the Squirtle's scales were damp, and though her touch was probably meant to be gentle, the moisture made it feel almost painful. Finally he gave in to the combined pushing and padded nervously up the ramp. When he got to the top he looked down: Tyson was staring up at him expectantly, claws spread to catch him. Yet…_

_The floor seemed a long ways away…_

"_C'mon, Zona! It's not hard!"_

"_Just fall," said Cirrus gently. "Just let go and fall."_

"_I… I c-can't… I…"_

"_Just relax…"_

_He went so far as to close his eyes, but the instant he did so—the instant he lost sight of the floor below—his mind took over, his imagination, riddled with scars from the Watchers, making the fall seem long enough to break his bones, Tyson dashing away cackling…_

"_No…" he said finally. "I can't do it."_

"_Come _on_, Zona," said Leo, almost pleading._

"_No," repeated Zona resolutely, turning and stiffly walking back down the ramp. Leo met him at the bottom. "No, Leo… I… I just can't do it. I'm… scared."_

But they'd kept it up. Two days from then they, the same four, had gone back to the same room, and with the same results. In the end Zona had sat in the corner, staring at the wall, as Leo and Cirrus took turns placing their health at risk, counting on another to save them. After both visits, either at supper or later that night, before they'd gone to sleep, Leo would press up against Zona and try to talk to him about why he wouldn't trust Tyson. Both times, he said nothing, trying to ignore the Shinx.

_Coward,_ he would hear from his dreams at night. _You're a coward, Zona, and you're all alone… And you know how We like Pokémon that are all alone…_

Yesterday, one last time, they had gone back. Cirrus was not with them: it had just been the three males, Zona, Leo, and Tyson. They spent an hour in that room, alone: Zona would stare up at the ledge, Leo would continue to talk to him, to motivate him, and Tyson would stand there, staring intently into the Vulpix's eyes. And finally…

"_I'll do it."_

"_If you really don't want to—what?" asked Leo._

"_I… will trust you," Zona told Tyson slowly. The Larvitar seemed taken aback for a moment, but then, gravely, he nodded and moved over to the other side of the ledge._

"_You're sure?" Leo sounded confused. "I… I mean, what changed your mind, all of a sudden?"_

_Zona looked at him, but for a moment he said nothing, trying to formulate a proper response. "I will… because you are so sure it is safe. Because… I-I want to trust you, Leo, and I've got to start somewhere."_

_Leo only nodded in reply._

_Shaking already, Zona stepped up the ramp. Already he felt nervous—already he was regretting trying to put up such a show of bravado. He _was _a coward, he told himself bitterly._

_When he reached the top, as he had the first day, he looked down. Tyson's clear blue eyes were staring back up at him, confident, peaceful, content, in a way, with his lot._

_Still shaking, he raised his head back up and shut his eyes. Instantly in his mind's eye the floor was falling away and Tyson was no longer there. He quaked, and then, before he had the chance to second-guess himself as he had last time, Zonaphèras leapt—_

—_for an instant he was falling, falling, and he was terrified—there was no bottom, he'd keep falling forever, or he'd hit the ground and hurt himself or die—_

—_and then, rather more jarringly than he had anticipated, he felt stubby, dense little arms across his back, and he was no longer falling._

"_Yes! Yes! Zona, you did it!" crowed Leo._

_He opened his eyes to see one of Tyson's eyes still on him over his beaklike maw. The Larvitar smiled._

"_Good job, Zona."_

"Zona?"

He stopped and looked up, and with a start he leapt back—he'd very nearly walked into Cirrus' shell. It was Anise that had spoken; the Ambipom was looking back at him curiously. Zona snapped to attention.

"I'm—I'm sorry, Miss Anise. I was just…thinking."

"No, it's fine, dear," said Anise understandingly. "I don't blame you. It's just that we're at the gate, and there's someone behind you trying to get your attention."

"What?" Zona turned around to see Eli leaning against the wall, arms crossed. He froze.

The expression on the Machop's face was unusually neutral: this was the first time Zona had to admit he had no idea what Eli was thinking. With a grunt, the Fighting-type pushed himself off of the wall and began to walk towards Zona. _Walk_—not the usual arrogant saunter that he usually adopted when talking to Zona. This was an ordinary, perhaps even precise, careful treading.

As he approached, Zona could hear Leo begin to growl slightly. The Vulpix ducked his head a little, but it was not in obedience this time—he sent a glare at the Machop, who slowed uncertainly but did not stop until he was within arm's length of Zona.

There was a tense silence for a long moment.

"Eli," said Zona guardedly.

The Machop swallowed, fidgeting nervously.

"You needn't worry," continued Zona in a flat voice. "Zeven isn't around this time."

"No—that's—that's not what—" Eli broke off, seeming embarrassed: he raised a single hand up to his chin and left it there for a moment, as if in thought. "That's not it. It's…" He sighed. "I… I wanna ask your forgiveness, Zona."

Leo's growls shut off instantly, and Zona himself gasped slightly.

"You want to _what?_"

"I want to apologize." Again, a nervous fidgeting.

"…You want to…?"

"For… for everything. I know I been mean to you for a long time… and… well, I know I'm prob'ly not the brightest torch on the wall, but… Look," he added, seeing Zona's skeptical expression, "I know you probably don't believe me. I… guess I don't blame you. But will you hear me out?"

Zona hesitated, but nodded.

"Okay… Good. We… we been through a lot in the past two weeks, right? I mean… even before that. We lost our homes, an' our parents… Before then, I was pickin' on you mainly 'cause I was jealous." Eli looked down ashamedly. "I knew you were smart, and I wasn't, but I felt… I felt better, knowin' I could push you around. But after we got here… it was different. I picked on you 'cause I was nervous, 'cause… I realized I didn't really know what I'd got myself into.

"But now… I mean, that business with…with the Sneasel, yeah, that shook me up. For awhile I was afraid. But it's just… since then, while we been stuck in the Base, I been thinking…"

He looked back up at Zona, the intensity in his eyes speaking volumes about his sincerity.

"We're not so different now, Zona. We been through a lot of the same stuff, and… we're going on this mission together… I think, since we're basically startin' over our lives with this whole Resistance business… maybe you and me could start over, too."

Zona stared back at him, thinking.

"I… I don't think we're gonna be friends. At least, not at first. I'd be stupid to think that. But maybe… for once, we can be nice to each other? What do you say, Zona?"

It was obvious even to Zona that the Machop was entirely sincere; even so, he toyed with the idea of appearing uncertain or even refusing Eli's offer, just to upset him. But he was right: they had been through almost the same tortures, had endured things that no Pokémon should have to endure. In a sense, Eli would understand him better than even Leo could.

"…I say…"

Eli tensed.

"…Yes." Zona held out a forepaw; Eli stared at it for a moment, confused, and then, understanding, reached out and grabbed it with one of his hands. Slowly, they shook.

"Thanks, Zona."

There was a happiness in Eli's eyes that Zona did not think he'd seen before—and absently he wondered how many of those Pokémon the Fighting-type spent his time with were really his friends at all.

The Vulpix turned back around and stepped forward, past the others from Team Stripes. Ahead he could see the light at the end of the cave, and he knew that the instant he left his memory would be wiped. So he savored the moment—he waited, because he wanted with all his heart to remember this moment.

Yes, he was nervous. Yes, he was uncertain about what this mission would entail. But he had those who he could, perhaps, consider friends by his side. He had one less enemy in the world.

"You ready, Zona?" asked Leo after a moment.

Zona inhaled, eyes closed; and then he exhaled sharply, opening them and staring again at the light at the end of the tunnel.

Zonaphèras nodded.

"I'm ready."

* * *

Note: "Reynard" is not a word that refers specifically to male foxes, but it is used in such a manner in this context. The usual term for a male fox is "dog," and I think you'll excuse me for letting Miranda pass on saying something that sounds undignified nearly to the point of being vulgar.

Even if the word doesn't refer specifically to foxes, of course, it still gets the point across, doesn't it?


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: College is starting within a few days, which means… well, I'll probably not have a whole lot of time to work on the next chapter, at least for a little while. But have patience, please: I'll work on it every chance I get and hopefully you'll get it before December :p.

To the rest of the Team: Thank you for your patience in waiting for this chapter. Also thanks to those of you (and you know who you are) who practically yelled at me to get my priorities straight and worry more about college than some fanciful story. I think the chapter has come out better for the wait.

Leo and Ambera belong to ScytheRider. For once, however, practically everything else in this chapter is of my origin. Pokémon and all related official material belong to Nintendo et al.

**Chapter 8**

As before, it seemed like no time at all had passed, and yet Zona had suddenly gone from being surrounded by stone to being out in the middle of a forest. He hoped nothing had been said in the last half-hour that would be missed.

The trees were so close around them here that he could not see the sky, but he did not need to: he knew what impending weather felt like—the area around Leppa Town was prone to be stormy in summer—but he felt nothing of it now; the morning must have been clear, which would earn no complaints from him.

Now that any enmity that Leo might have been feeling toward Eli had been resolved, the two seemed to be getting along amiably: as the group walked, eventually coming out of the little forest and out onto the plains proper, the Shinx and the Machop stayed together, talking animatedly.

Zona had to admit he wasn't entirely pleased with that. But almost immediately after thinking that he realized how selfish it sounded: who was he to decide with whom Leo could become friends? And besides, it wasn't as if he (Zona) and Eli were enemies any more, either. It seemed odd to him that the Pokémon who had despised him the most could so rapidly turn around and ask to be forgiven. But then the Vulpix remembered the sight of Zeven's claws gleaming in the torchlight, and he shivered despite himself.

He recognized the path they were taking almost instantly: it was the same path that the survivors had been lead up on their way to the base. Or rather, he _felt _like he knew the path: to him all the plains were the same, a great, nigh-endless expanse of green and brown, with the occasional tree the only thing to break the monotony. But it felt to him as if they were heading in the right direction: he knew that Leppa Town was some ways southeast of the base; he could see the sun, barely up above the horizon, to his left out of the corner of his eye. This had to be the right way.

_Have you ever watched the slow path of the sun across the sky, kit?_

"_N-no, Father…"_

_Indeed not. Even I have never watched it trace its full path: only the Xatu species has the fortitude to stare into the great flaming eye all day. But even a cursory glance at it will tell you what time of day it is, no?_

"_Of c-c-course, Father."_

_Just so. Because the sun always rises and sets in the same places. That great Ember that lights the world is born anew each day in the east, and falls into the sea each evening in the west. Thus, by looking at the sun, one will always know both the time of day and the direction in which one is traveling._

"_But… we won't ever have to t-travel anywhere, w-will we, Father? We're s-safe where we are…"_

_Oh, yes, kit. Quite safe. I promise you that. But I will not promise that we will never have to travel; so remember this, Zonaphèras: one day it may serve you well_.

He felt a dull ache in his heart as the memory faded. All of the shock of his father's death had worn off as the weeks stuck in-Base had passed, and now… now he felt cheated. Now he felt a kind of raw jealousy—directed at whom, he couldn't say. But Amos' death was at the root of the problem: so much wisdom, so much sage advice, had been passed to him from the Ninetales, and in such short a time. If Amos had seen fit to pass all the information he had passed to his son, when that son had barely been alive for even a fraction of his lifespan, what other wisdom would Zona have been able to learn if his mother had not turned traitor?

Yes—that was it. That was what was nagging at him, that was the target of the jealousy. His mother. She was the one who had started it, wasn't she? She was the one who had… who had stolen Father from him. His Ember began to flare to life inside him, and unconsciously he started growling, angry and ready to lash out at the first thing that marked itself as an enemy.

"Um…?"

A cold, damp claw touched his back. Snarling, a red haze coming over his vision, he whirled around, snapping at Cirrus' softer underbelly. The Squirtle cried out in terror, but he didn't hear—he was angry, she had no right to touch him, filthy, damp Water-type—

All of his muscles locked up at once, and then he lost feeling—just for a moment—all over his body. Helplessly, he tumbled to the side, and by the time he had feeling back in his aching muscles Leo was standing over him, sparking.

"Zona, don't do that, or I'll shock you again, I swear!"

He tried to speak, but all that game out of his mouth was unintelligible gibberish. "_Vuuulpiiiix…"_

"You should know better than that!" continued Leo indignantly. "It's wrong to take out your anger on other Pokémon. What did Cirrus ever do to you?"

He regained control of his tongue. "It—it was an accident—I wasn't—" He kept babbling, kept cutting himself off; Leo kept staring down at him disappointedly.

_Excuses, excuses, Zonaphèras! Excuses are for the weak, excuses are for the arrogant, for the weak-minded fool who feels it is beneath him to simply apologize! If you have wronged someone, do not blather on spouting nonsense like a fool Chatot: apologize, and put the matter behind you if you can._

"I'm sorry," he said finally, getting back to his paws momentarily before bowing in front of Cirrus. "I… I shouldn't have… I was thinking about…" He clamped his maw shut. "I'm sorry."

The Squirtle seemed taken aback. "Er…. Umm… You're under a lot of pressure, so… I guess I can't blame you…"

He looked up. She had her left foreclaw in the grip of her right, staring at the limb uncomfortably.

"Can… Can I ask a favor of you, Cirrus?" he asked after a short silence. She started, apparently lost in thought.

"Uh? Oh… Yeah, sure! What is it?"

"If you're going to touch me again… please warn me if possible." He shuddered. "It's… no offense, but… you know, you're _wet_."

She smiled apologetically. "Yeah, I guess I am, aren't I? … Sorry, Zona."

He shook his head. "You… you can't help what you are, no more than I can." He looked around: everyone else was staring at him. His ears flattened self-consciously. "Uh... Sorry… I'm wasting travel time, aren't I?"

Embarrassed, he trailed behind the rest as they continued forward. At least, if he was in the back, he reasoned, he wouldn't slow them down as badly…

* * *

"My dearest…"

It was evening, after dinner, and his mother was washing him clean. She had stopped to speak, but he, content as he was, didn't want to move. When she did not resume her ministrations, however, he turned around to look her in the eye.

"What is it, Mother?"

"Do you… have problems with the other children?" she asked gently, concern shining in her eyes.

"Problems?"

"I was watching you today, when I'd sent you outside to play… The others don't like you, do they?"

He hesitated, then lied. "No… It's not… they like me…"

"My little Chople Berry," she said, shaking her head. "Lying comes hard to you, doesn't it?"

He didn't reply.

"Tell me, my littlest. Please," she added, nuzzling his curls.

"…W-well… The Bulbasaur's always afraid of me, even though I can't blow fire yet, and the Tyrogue, he always punches me, even when I haven't done anything, and, and Eli…"

He broke off.

"…What about him?" prodded his mother, with an almost disdainful snort.

_He's mean to me, he beats me up, but never enough to leave a bruise, then he picks me up and throws me into the Arbor…_

"…Never mind," he muttered, turning away and lying down.

"Zona?" He felt his mother prod at his back. "…Zona," she snapped, but he still didn't move.

"If you are so certain you wish to keep your pain to yourself, then so be it," his mother said finally, regretfully, before padding away and leaving him in silence.

* * *

He tore himself forcefully from the memory, shaking his head violently to clear it. No, no! Now was not the time to reminisce; now was not the time to recall his home as it used to be. He had to put that all behind him—he knew that seeing what was left of him home would be hard enough without his head being stuck in the clouds envisioning how it _used_ to be.

The rest of the group was still several feet in front of him, but none of them were talking. Leo looked like he was tired already, tail lower than he usually kept it. How long had he been lost in that memory? It had felt like only a moment…

He caught a flash of movement out of the corner of his right eye and turned to see Cirrus plodding along with him, gazing ahead at the rest of the group (Zona did a double take: no, she really was beside him, and not up with the other three—How had he missed that?) with a sort of placid, serene look on her face. She was probably as lost in thought as he had been just a moment ago.

"Say… Cirrus?"

As before, she seemed startled to hear anyone call her name. She looked around wildly for a moment before realizing it was he who had spoken.

"Oh! Zona! Hi!" She beamed.

"…Why are you back here?"

"Well…" She shrugged. "You seemed lonely, I guess. I mean, we were all up there talking and having fun… Eli's actually pretty funny if you talk to him long enough!" She giggled. "But you were back here, all on your own, looking distracted and worried, and… Well, I thought, if Leo's gonna stay up there, then I should at least give you some company."

"Oh…" Zona looked away. "Um… Thanks."

"Sure!"

"Um…" He cleared his throat nervously. "You… you aren't still angry about, uh…"

"What? No!" Cirrus seemed shocked that he would even entertain the thought. "No way… You're under a lot of pressure right now, aren't you? And I took you by surprise…" She trailed off, fidgeting with her left foreclaw again.

He stared at her for a minute, watching what she was doing. Her left wrist was caught by her right claw, and she continued to stare down at her left, focusing so intently that Zona could almost feel it.

"If… If you don't mind my asking… What are you doing?"

"What?... Oh. Uh…" Instantly both claws were down by her side again, and the Squirtle was staring at him guiltily. "N-nothing…"

_Do not pry, kit. It is impolite; if there is something that must be said to you, it will be said, but prying is a betrayal of tru_

"No!" he snapped, and Cirrus started nervously. This time it was his turn to look guilty. "Sorry… That wasn't at you."

"Oh." Cirrus smiled, relieved.

"I just… all this time we've been walking, it's been memory after memory, and…" He shook his head. "I don't need that right now. I don't want to think about the past. All I want to do is…" He swallowed. "All I want to do is get on with this, get there, and get back."

"So… you just want to put all this behind you?" asked Cirrus quietly.

He looked back at her, and she at him, but as much as he wanted to say yes, he honestly didn't know.

"Hey, you two! Cirrus, Zona!" Leo called.

Together they looked forward. The other three had stopped and were looking back at them.

"Try not to fall behind, okay?" the Shinx continued.

"Sorry!" Cirrus called, and Zona echoed quietly.

"It's fine, dears," called Anise. "We're about to stop for lunch. Just try not to fall that far behind in future, please…"

Lunch? Had it already been that long? He looked down: yes, there was his shadow, straight beneath him. Already noontime… They had to be almost there…

Anise set the bag down as they neared, reaching in and pulling out three Apples; she placed one in front of Leo, who was already sitting. The Shinx unsheathed a claw and began to slice out a piece of the fruit. Zona sat down near him.

"You keepin' up okay, Zona?" asked the Shinx instantly. "I, uh, I mean emotionally, 'cause actually you _were _fallin' pretty far behind…"

"No," he admitted. "I'm distracted, I'm tense… I just want all this to be over and done with." Zona looked over at Leo. "If you see me trail behind again, or if I look like I'm not all there… I want you to shock me again."

"Say _what_?" Leo had been about to bite into his piece of Apple, but at Zona's words his head snapped back around to face him.

"Shock me again," he repeated, more emphatically this time. "If there was ever a time I wanted to focus, Leo, it's now. I can't afford to be distracted by anything… I can't afford to think about the way my home used to be. If I return to Leppa Town with any expectations other than total ruin, I… I feel like I'll snap." He inhaled deeply, and let the breath out slowly. "So I want you to shock me if you see me anything less that totally focused."

He stared intensely at the Shinx, trying to convey the fact that he _really _meant this, that he really… he really _trusted _him to keep him in line. For a long moment Leo's wide, bright yellow eyes stared back at him, and then the Shinx nodded. "You betcha, Zona."

As they ate, he felt his eyes drawn back to Cirrus, who was sitting quietly a short distance away next to Eli, chewing on her own piece of fruit. Something nagged him about the way she was holding it, but though he stared at her for several minutes he couldn't _quite _place his paw on it…

Until his gaze twitched sideways to Eli for a moment. He made careful note of how the Fighting-type was holding his piece of Apple: hands on both sides of it, compared to Cirrus, who was holding one claw underneath the Apple while the other steadied it. The bottom claw was her (he had to stop and think for a moment) left one. The one she'd been holding onto and staring at as they walked.

He remembered the intensity of her gaze, as though she were trying to force her claw to move. But despite the intensity, not one of her digits had so much as twitched.

_You're not the only one who came into this broken…_

_None of us have ever really talked about our pasts, because it never mattered to any of us…_

And when she'd touched him before, when he'd been angry… he'd never thought about it before now, but she must have been on his right. So the claw that had touched his back was her left…

What if she couldn't help it? What if there was something wrong with that claw? … But why would she want to hide it?

"You still there?" he heard Leo ask cautiously.

He shook his head slightly, looking away from the Squirtle and toward Leo again. "Y-yes…"

"Okay, good. Hey, you gonna eat your part of the Apple or not? 'Cause if you don't want it, I'll take it off ya!"

* * *

**Two Hours Later**

There it was.

As soon as he had gotten close enough to see the distortion, he knew instantly where he was. He froze.

"What is it, Zona?" asked Leo, coming to a stop beside him.

They had been moving at a far more brisk pace after lunch, and Zona had begun to tire; but soon enough a dark smudge appeared on the horizon, first thing he'd seen in ages to break the monotony of the plains. He had been uneasy the instant it came within sight, and now that he was standing within only several dozen body lengths of it, its presence set his teeth on edge.

"It's a Mystery Dungeon, isn't it?" asked Cirrus, voice shaking slightly.

It presented itself as nothing short of a massive wall of overgrown trees, gigantic, gnarled, scaly things with vines growing rampant up and down their trunks. All the greenery was an awful color—almost _too_ green, a sickly, toxic, false imitation of natural beauty. And all of it was just _slightly _out of phase with reality, giving him a headache as he tried to focus on it.

"Ashwood Arbor," Zona growled.

"Dialga's spikes, Zona," gasped Eli behind him. "I didn't throw ya into _that,_ did I?"

"It's bigger than it used to be," Zona said. "It… It was much smaller the last time I had to go into it."

"Mystery Dungeons can grow," explained Cirrus. "I mean… no one knows for sure how they work, but… Maybe it noticed all the destruction going on past it and fed off of all the negative feelings, or something…?"

"You saying that you believe Mystery Dungeons can _think_?" yelped Leo. "I don' even wanna think about that!"

From where he was, he couldn't see anything past the Arbor. Not that there was much left of Leppa Town to see …

"But there's no reason to go into it now, is there?" asked Cirrus.

"No, cadets… You're right. We aren't prepared for a Mystery Dungeon. Let's just go around."

But Zona barely heard the Ambipom speak, and it was not until she placed a concerned tail on his back that he started and looked around, to see that the other three had already started moving on. Hurriedly, he followed after them.

* * *

**Village Ruins**

He had thought himself prepared to see it, had thought that his focus on the present and not the past would lessen the emotional blow; but it turned out that he was wrong on all counts, as when the town—what was _left _of the town came into focus, Zonaphèras froze, jaw dropping.

Gone.

It was really all gone.

It was really—

_He stumbled blindly away from the Bulbasaur's body, still crying, wanting to break down and wail again, scream for his mother, for his father, but he knew that neither one would hear him. They were both gone, both out of his life; he was alone, now, alone in all of Ambera, one of the few left alive perhaps for miles around. He kept walking and walking, not knowing, not _caring_ where his paws were taking him, and it wasn't until he noticed that darkness had closed around him that he realized he had entered one of the stone houses, one of the few structures in the village still standing after the flames had finished their ravaging. He inhaled, smelling the awful, rotten, metallic smell of dried blood, and a wisp—a faint trace—of a familiar smell. His father's smell. He'd stumbled into his own home, his body unthinkingly returning to a place he'd thought was safe._

_And there he lay, Amoscandar, once so strong and proud, fluid and graceful in motion, now cold and stiff and… and feeble. The kit had no illusions, did not try to fool himself into thinking that his father seemed to simply be asleep: no, it was obvious that the Ninetales had stopped running and would never so much as blink again, flat on his back, tails stuck at whatever angle rigor had locked them in, eyes wide open and lifeless. Amos' throat was gone, and blood had coated the fine, clean fur on his chest, clumping it together and staining it an awful color._

_The kit stumbled forward again, falling to his knees on the way and not bothering to get back up again. His vision was cloudy, but he could still make out the shape of his father, not gold any more but a sort of sickly yellow coated with an ugly brown._

"_Father… Father… D-D-Daddy…"_

_He stayed there, in that position, for hours, calling out for his father over and over again until he was hoarse. But the body remained stiff and still, and he was alone._

"Just… just give 'em a minute, Leo."

He looked up, finally, back in the present again. His vision was still misty, but he preferred it that way: he did not have to see the expanse of dead earth, strewn here and there with bits of charred wood and ash that the wind and rain had not cleared away. He did not have to see that the only things still standing in the town were the few houses composed of things that would not burn, one of which was his own, and some stone fences that had not been toppled in the chaos.

He heard muttering to his left, and turned his head. Eli was a short distance away, having fallen to his knees, staring agape at the ruins. He wanted to say something—to do something—to let him know that he shared the pain, he knew, perhaps even better than the Machop did, precisely what he was going through. With a sudden roar, Eli fell forward, pounding at the ground with his fists. Every time he struck the earth, Zona could feel it vibrating, even several feet away.

"No!" _Thump! _"No, no, no!" _Thump!_ "Those… _monsters!_"

Monsters. Zona dropped his head again, eyes closed, shaking, tears leaking out of his eyes. Monsters. All of them… with his mother at the head.

He could hear the tears falling to the earth, and hated the smell of the salt.

"…Miss Anise?" he overheard Cirrus start.

"Yes, dear?"

He did not want to move. He did not want to think, did not want to feel. It was so much easier just to stop and listen.

"Um… I think there's a storm coming in."

"A storm?" Leo muttered. "I don't feel anything…"

A storm. That meant cold, and water. But he still felt warm and dry, and the breeze that teased his curls was just as dry.

"But those clouds…"

"Yes, dear, I think you're right. Very heavy clouds…" Anise paused. "At the very least, it'll be a heavy rain."

"Where'd the clouds come from, though? It looked all clear as we approached…"

"Weather can change quickly here," Zona muttered. He moved his head to look back at them before opening his eyes. The other three from Team Stripes were all staring back at him uneasily. He shook his head. "Don't know why. The weather here's just unpredictable."

None of the others said anything.

"… I'm fine," insisted the Vulpix. "I was just surprised, by all—" He broke off. "I mean… I'm fine now." He padded back over to them; their eyes remained fixed on him until he came within a body length of Leo, and the two females' eyes shifted away from him and toward Eli. The Shinx, however, did not move.

"You… used to live here…" Leo croaked, shaking slightly.

Zona said nothing.

"Raikou's whiskers, Zona, I… I'm sorry…" the Shinx continued, wide-eyed.

"Don't apologize," mumbled the Vulpix. "You didn't do anything. It's…" He couldn't think of anything to say. What was there to say? It was all gone. Apologizing would not bring it back, never mind the apologies of a Pokémon that had nothing to do with the town's destruction in the first place. He just shook his head again.

He turned away from the Shinx and toward Eli, walking over to him. The Machop was back on his feet now, calm, arms hanging by his sides. There was a bitter look on his face. Slowly, Zona padded up beside him.

"It's all gone." The Machop's voice was flat, as though he'd expended all his emotion and fury pounding furiously at the earth. He did not seem aware that Zona was near him until, wrinkling his nose slightly, the Vulpix nudged his hand.

"Wh…?" Eli looked down and caught Zona's eye. A silent moment passed between them—neither spoke, neither moved. Neither had any need to. What they communicated required no words, but simply an understanding—an acceptance, a resolution.

_It's all gone._

_But we're still here_.

Together, they nodded, and then looked forward again at the ruins of the village. Zona was sad now, yes, and he wondered if he would ever completely overcome the grief; but he was determined now, too, determined to prevent anything like this from happening again, to prevent any more catastrophes, orphans without parents. There would be no more like him, if he had his say.

"Let's go," said Eli finally.

Zona nodded. "Let's get this over with."

Together, the two took the first steps onto the ashen ground that marked where the village had once stood.

* * *

Whatever instinct had guided him home after the catastrophe did so again now. Leppa Town had always been disorganized, with shelters or homes popping up wherever a resident decided to live. And yet Zona could tell, somehow, that his home was nearby—it was still standing, of course, but more than that there was a sort of _nudge_ in his head. _Come here_, it seemed to be saying, and he would follow it. _Come to me_.

The ruins still smelled of smoke and fire, even now, weeks after the catastrophe. Zona was not bothered by it—no, he was bothered enough by the state of the village itself—but as he walked he could hear some of the others behind him coughing, and oftentimes the sharp inhaling sound of one of them holding his or her breath. Fire… was fire nothing but a tool for destruction? The thought of it made him sick to his stomach—more so than he already was. Was that the truth of his element? Had the Ember been created to do nothing but take life, take possessions from others? Vulpix and Ninetales, mysterious mischief makers, good for nothing but deceit and destruction.

He looked up, pulled out of his thoughts by the little locating _nudge_. "We're getting close…"

The wind had died down some as they'd been walking, but it picked up again as they approached a half-collapsed stone fence, blowing traces of ash into his nose and mouth. He sneezed, and heard the others behind him coughing—

—there was a scent, a scent he had not smelled in weeks and had not thought he would ever smell again—

Zona froze, fur bristling and tails straight back. He could hear his heartbeat, rapid, and had to fight to control his breathing.

"Wh—what is it, Zona?" asked Leo. "Hey, wait, that scent…"

"Quiet!" the Vulpix pleaded in a soft voice, turning his head to look at the rest.

The wind blew again, and Zona smelled it again.

"It smells like—" Leo began in a whisper, but Zona glared at him sharply and the Shinx broke off.

He crept forward, past the fence. Previously hidden by the partially-collapsed barrier, he could now see, not twenty body lengths away, his own house.

More importantly, he could see what was in front of it.

The wind picked up again, and Zonaphèras smelled the best smell in the whole world.

The golden shape sat in front of the brownstone structure, facing toward it. As the wind blew, its fur rustled, and several tails lashed as if in irritation. Zona continued to creep forward, not daring to believe it—and also scared out of his wits, screaming at himself to turn around and forget that he ever saw this. Dimly, he could hear the others creeping behind him, and his heart sank. If _he _could hear them, then…

"Welcome, travelers, to Leppa Town."

Zona froze.

The Ninetales did not move as she spoke, staring down at the ground. For the most part she was so still she could have been a statue: the only parts of her moving were her tails, which were whipping back and forth agitatedly.

When she spoke, it was in a quiet, flat voice.

"This was once the place I called home, where I lived with my mate and my child. I wanted nothing more than a peaceful life, to be free of conflict and to live in a safe land under the Master's benevolence. Granted power by the gods and through my force of will, I became a magician in his service. Into the midst of my peaceful live in this village came the orders: there was a traitor in this village. A letter had been intercepted that seemed to contain coded messages, though the cipher was so thick that not even our greatest minds could fully crack it. The letter had originated in this village. The Master's word is law. My orders were to find the traitor that had sent it, and kill him, prying information from him if I could."

She paused, as if to gather her thoughts.

"Weeks and weeks I searched for this traitor, studying several individuals, following them, staring into their minds with my powers and finding nothing. My species are long-lived and are often renowned for their patience… but something inside me, perhaps the desire to protect that had grown with my child, drove me to hurry, to find the creature that threatened my family's safety and destroy it."

Zona wanted to speak, but his mouth wouldn't move. His tongue felt dry. The wind blowing into his eyes made him squint.

"At last my patience was spent. Ashamed at my lack of success and my unwillingness to persist, I nevertheless sent a message of my own back to the forces serving under the Master, requesting a small contingent of soldiers. Using these soldiers, I razed the town, killing the adults yet leaving the children alive—for I am a mother: I understand the instinct to protect my progeny before myself. As a mother, I could not bring myself to kill the children. It was during the razing that I discovered who the traitor was."

Again, a pause.

"My mate, Amoscandar, a Ninetales like me, and one of the few Pokémon whose mind I could not read."

The Ninetales' tails where flailing now, throwing up earth and ash into the wind, and yet the rest of the Fire Pokémon's body remained perfectly still.

"I killed him," she said dully. "I killed him because of my orders, and because of what he represented. He represented the Resistance; he represented a gathering of radicals who foolishly think the Master can be toppled." She hesitated. "He represented a danger to my child."

_A… a danger?_

"And yet my child fled from me as I did the deed. And indeed, why shouldn't he have? The village was aflame, all was chaos, and I had snapped and snarled at him in my wild bloody fury. Though I searched for him all that evening, I found nothing; the ash and the wind foiled his pawprints, and the smells of soot and fire and blood meant that I could not track him by scent. My child is gone, perhaps taken in by some other benevolent family somewhere, perhaps taken by the Watchers he feared so much. And now I am alone."

Slowly, the Ninetales' head rose.

"My name is Mirandalys, Magister-Colonel in service to the Master, and the place where you now stand was destroyed at my word. So tell me, travelers, what cause have you to walk in these ruins?"

Slowly, she stood on all four legs and gracefully turned around. Zona stared at her and was unable to look away. She simply stared back, mouth open slightly, eyes blank.

"Mother…" Zona croaked.

Miranda was still silent, still frozen, except for her eyes, which shifted slightly left and right as she took in Zona's companions. As she finished, her gaze settled on him again, and she began to tremble.

Thoughts were whirling through his head, almost too fast for him to comprehend. His mother—his mother was here, the traitor, the killer. Had his father really been a _danger_ to him? How? What was going to happen now? Lionel had said that the mission was guaranteed to be safe, that the Master had abandoned the town.

Miranda's trembling grew worse, carmine eyes beginning to burn with fury. Her lips pulled back into a furious snarl, and a terrible, low growl began to emanate from somewhere deep inside her.

He wanted to speak, wanted to plead with her—no, he wasn't sure what he wanted. If he spoke, what would he say? Zona's mind went totally blank, and he could only stare into his mother's glowing eyes, sure that within seconds he would die. He had never seen his mother so angry.

With a suddenness that made him flinch, Miranda threw her head back and roared into the sky.

"**HOW—DARE YOUUUUUUU**!"

The sheer volume and raw emotion of the scream immediately put him in mind of the sound that had pulled him from his Watcher-induced coma. Miranda's voice had been flat before, but the scream had had enough emotion packed into it to make up for all of it and then some. He heard Cirrus shriek in fear, while Leo and Eli simply growled. Zona could hear the sound of electricity sparking off of the Shinx's fur.

The Ninetales slowly lowered her head back down, eyes still aflame. She was crouching, now, almost a combat stance.

"Why are you here‽" she snapped.

"I—" Zona's words caught in his throat. He couldn't tell her, could he? She was working with the Master. If what he was here to find was to be used against his forces—

Suddenly he cried out and staggered backward. It felt like intense pressure was being applied to his head, to his mind. As if through a fog he saw his mother's eyes, still glowing red, but now with traces of violet around the edges. The pressure building up against his mind pulsed rhythmically, like something beating against a wall.

Instantly, instinctively, he recognized what it was. His mother had mentioned looking into others' minds: now she was attempting to do the same to him, to force her way into his brain and extract everything she could. Desperate, he began to sort through his memories, trying to find something to fight her off, something that would prevent her from breaking through.

"Stop fighting!" Miranda snarled.

The pressure was awful, as if his skull had been sliced open and his brain was being stabbed with thousands of small, sharp claws. He felt like his head had been dunked in ice-water. Oh, he didn't believe he was thinking this, but—even the Watchers would have been preferable to this agony!

_The Watchers…_

The instant he thought about them, the terrible phantasms with sickly yellow eyes, the pressure on his mind vanished. His mother gasped, flinching away, eyes shut.

Zona stepped forward again, breathing heavily. Slowly, Miranda opened her eyes again and looked down at him.

"Such is your fear, kit," the vixen said quietly. "Such is your fear of those foul creatures that it can block me from your mind." She shook her head. "But just because _your_ mind is closed to me does not mean the same for those of your companions." Her eyes shifted. Zona looked over his shoulder and saw that Leo had been transfixed by her gaze.

He looked forward again, knowing that he should do _something_ but not sure what it was. She… she was his _mother_, he couldn't actually _attack her_...

A gray blur—Eli—dashed past him, rushing for his mother. Without so much as blinking, Miranda turned her attention to him. Not a body length from her, almost within arm's reach, the Machop froze, floated into the air, and was flung backwards so quickly that Anise had no time to dodge: Zona could hear the two grunting and skidding along the ground.

His mother returned her focus to him.

"A weapon." She blinked. "…Sent here in search of a weapon… against the Watchers?" The Ninetales raised her head slightly, looking down at Zona disdainfully. "What irony, that they send you of all Pokémon. What cruel fate, that I should be here when you arrive." She smirked. "It is also an example of how short-sighted your leaders are. The village is in ruins, yes, and officially the Master has removed this place from the map, as it were. But more importantly…"

Miranda shook her head slowly, laughing mirthlessly.

"More importantly, your leaders instantly assumed that the weapon was a _thing_, an item that could be lost and found, a thing Amos might have left behind and that I had missed in my search. You fools! What you have been sent to find has been with you the entire time!"

"What are you talking about?" Anise asked before anyone else could speak. The Ambipom sounded indignant.

"I cannot see into Zona's mind, but I have no need to. I recognize what he is, what potential he holds. If your great leaders did not have the foresight to look into his mind, then they are dullards who have only survived thus far due to luck. And I assure you, kit, your fear may block my powers, but my Psychic abilities are merely toys compared to those of a proper Psychic type. You will not block them."

"Potential?" asked Zona slowly.

Miranda seemed about to reply, but as her mouth opened to speak he saw her eyes shift, and lightning tore through the air mere feet above his head. Laughing, the Ninetales leapt out of the way.

"What spirit, little Shinx!" she exclaimed derisively.

"Zona, don't listen to her!" Leo cried. "She's a bad lady! You can't trust anything she says!"

"You impugn my honor, you little whelp," snapped Miranda. "Would I lie to my own son?"

"You lied to Father to serve your own ends," said Zona in a low voice. His mother looked down her snout at him.

"You must understand, Zonaphèras, that your father was a danger to you." The Ninetales huffed. "I did not recognize who he was until it was too late, but believe me when I say that I told you the truth before. My orders were to eradicate every adult in the village. But you remember, do you not? I swore to him I would spare his life. You heard me do it."

"Yes," he acknowledged guardedly.

"Zona! Come _on!_" yelled Leo. "We've gotta get out of here!"

"I would have done so. Of course, I would have had to take all of you prisoner, as I did to the children that did not flee from the village as you did; and not even Amos could fully block a skilled Psychic type. His treachery would have been exposed in the end, but I assure you I, myself, _would have spared him_. But when he spoke, when he told me that he was the one I was searching for…" She trembled again. "There had been one who had, at one point, been among the most feared of the Master's enemies, sharing my home, pretending to love me, for over half a century! The Demon Fox, he had been called, for no one ever learned his name, only that he was a foreigner come long ago from the lands of humans. And who was to say that if I let him live, even for an hour, he would not take you and flee, conscript you into his fruitless battle against the Master? No: when he told me who he was, I could not spare him. I killed him for your sake."

"_Zona!_" It was Eli this time.

"And yet here you stand," Miranda mused, padding closer to the Vulpix. "Here you stand, a member of that very Resistance that I killed your father to keep you out of." She bent down and stared at him on eye level. Zona found himself unable to look away, caught up in his mother's carmine gaze. He began to tremble.

"What lies have they fed you, Zonaphèras?" his mother asked gently. "Have they told you of the Call, that mystic power they hope to use for their own twisted, selfish ends? Have they told you of the Master's misdeeds, his so-called _cruelty_? What ruler can rule without force? The Master is not cruel: he simply is wise enough to recognize sin and contamination and exterminate it before it spreads. That is not cruelty: that is benevolence.

"Have they tried to convince you to leave everything else behind and abandon me? Ah, I see acknowledgement in your eyes at last."

"_Zona—_" Eli's cries were cut off short as Miranda's gaze flickered in his direction for just a moment. Zona thought he could hear the Machop struggling to breathe, but he couldn't be sure—he was still captivated by his mother's gaze, the gentleness of her voice, her _smell_, the smell he loved and had not hoped to ever smell again…

"What foolishness," chided the Ninetales. "I am your mother, kit. I birthed you, raised you, spent more time with you than Amos or these _beasts_ ever did. What do you owe them? Safety for a few weeks at most, shelter from the Watchers, food, a place to sleep. What besides that? Nothing. What have they taught you? Falsehoods. Half-truths. Have they claimed to love you? They lie. You are the child of a magician; more than that, you are a member of a species whose deviousness and double-talk is renowned throughout the continent. They could never trust you, could never love you."

Zona was shaking. She… she was right, wasn't she? He'd thought the same way. Had they all been lying to him? He didn't owe them anything…

His mother nosed his curls gently, and then licked him with all the love and gentleness that he missed so much.

"My little Chople Berry… these Pokémon are naught but traitorous trash who sought to use you for their own selfish ends. But I… I am your mother. I love you, Zonaphèras."

_I love you, Zonaphèras…_

Zona squeezed his eyes shut, shaking like a flame in a galestorm.

_I love you._

_I love you._

_What do you owe them? … Nothing._

_I am your mother._

_I love you._

"_Zona!_" screamed Leo, far away.

_I love you._

"_Zona!_ _Tyson caught you!_"

…_What…?_

"Remember‽ You were scared to jump, but you said you wanted to trust me!"

_I am your…_

"You jumped and Tyson caught you!"

_I jumped and…_

"You trusted us and we came through, right‽"

Miranda glared daggers at him. "Shut _up_, you brat—"

"Stop," said Zona quietly.

The Ninetales seemed to flinch at his words, staring back down at him wide-eyed. Zona met her gaze again, this time matching the force of her will with his own. He did not lose himself in his mother's eyes this time.

"Mother, I… I…" Zona hesitated. "I love you too, I love you dearly, more than anything else in the world…"

At one he saw Miranda smile and heard Leo's cry of dismay. He ignored them both.

"But."

The smile vanished, and the Shinx fell silent.

"If you would only stop and listen… Your arguments sound false. Your justifications are full of holes. If you are a species of dishonesty, why should I trust anything you say?" He shook his head. "I love you, Mother… but I have found a family, one that loves me and cares for me just as much as you do. Perhaps you did birth me and raise me, but all the same, you lied to me and covered up the truth of the world—to what end? To protect me? Team Stripes has protected me as well, and its members have been nothing but honest the entire time."

He narrowed his eyes. Miranda seemed to back away slightly.

"I love you dearly. You love me just as much. But if I must choose one family over another, I choose the one that has kept me safe by teaching me, not by keeping me in the dark. I choose the one that has taught me to stand up for myself and given me the means to do so. If I must choose between the Resistance and you…"

Zona stepped back, beside Leo.

"I choose the Resistance."

The Magister-Colonel remained where she was for a long while, her eyes fixed on the Vulpix. Finally, slowly, she inhaled, relaxing and sitting back on the ground.

"So… be… it…" Mirandalys said slowly.

Just as slowly, Zona relaxed. "Let's go, everybody… We're done here."

He turned to look at Leo, and saw the look of shock on his face just as soon as he felt the terrible pressure on his left forepaw. He snapped his head back forward: Miranda was practically on top of him, one of her forepaws pinning his. Swiftly she raised the other forepaw and pushed the Shinx violently away.

"_So be it_," his mother said again.

He felt a terrible Psychic force take hold of him, and his head was suddenly forced upward, yet again staring into his mother's eyes. They were alight again, ruby and violet swirling around in a chaotic maelstrom.

"If that is your choice, then you are nothing more than a traitor yourself, a member of the Resistance." Miranda bared her fangs. "I need not hesitate to kill you!"

There was an instant where he felt a draft around his left foreleg, the barest suggestion of lots of pressure in the _wrong place_, and then—

_Snap_.

Instant agony! Only when he had been gripped by the Watchers had he felt such terrible, aching, _searing_ cold. It tore up and down his leg with an awful throbbing in time with his own heartbeat. He felt his mother release his forepaw, and he fell upon it. The pain was indescribable.

Zonaphèras screamed. The world around him faded into a mass of red and white and the only sounds he could hear were his heartbeat and the screaming, the screaming, dear _Moltres_, it _hurt_!

Somewhere above him water was moving. The dim shape that was his mother flinched away from it, and gently, yet swiftly, he felt himself being lifted and carried away. Whoever it was was obviously trying to take care, but they were also fleeing, and the motion made his broken leg move and _oh Entei, please, make it stop_ the world faded in and out until finally, gratefully, he fainted.

**Leo**

This was _not_ supposed to happen!

He scrambled fearfully after Anise as the Ambipom dashed away from the Ninetales, awkwardly balancing Zona within the grip of her tails.

Two encounters with the Master's servants in three weeks. What awful luck he had!

Behind him, he could hear Eli dashing to catch up, and further back there was the sound of Cirrus forcefully expelling water, keeping Miranda at bay. Leo knew she couldn't keep it up forever, and in the back of his mind began praying fervently, _Oh, Dialga, oh, please keep her safe, keep her safe, she put herself in so much danger _please_ keep her safe—_

Zona's hoarse screams had faded to silence now, and the little Shinx looked up to see that the Vulpix's eyes were closed. He'd probably passed out from the pain. Despite his fear Leo felt anger surge up again, like it had when Mirandalys had tried to convince Zona to side with her. She was his _mother!_ How in Ambera could she possibly do that to her own son? What kind of parent could cast aside their child? For once he had to consciously curb his instinct to turn and growl at the golden-furred Fire-type; not even all five of them together would stand an Ice-type's chance in a volcano against her. The only chance they had was to flee.

But to where? The Ninetales was older and stronger than the rest of them, probably the rest of them _combined_. She could run faster and could probably outlast them in terms of distance as well. All they could do was lose her, and since the only thing for miles around the village was flat plains—

Leo looked up from the ground again, his breathing labored. Anise was still a short distance ahead of him, running for all she was worth, toward a mass of green and brown that stretched for probably half a mile to either direction—

The Shinx's eyes widened. The Mystery Dungeon! That was it! That was their only chance to escape, to lose Miranda in the maze. But they weren't ready for it, they hadn't prepared for anything like this! Oh, _Raikou_…!

Though it felt like his legs were made of stone and his heart was about to beat its way out of his chest, he kept running, deciding that _maybe_ dying in a Mystery Dungeon wouldn't be nearly as bad as _definitely _dying to a magician. Finally, after running for what felt like hours but was probably only a few minutes they neared the border of the Dungeon. Ahead of him, Anise slowed to a stop, turning toward him. As he drew level with her, he stopped himself.

The Ambipom was winded, just the same as him, and so for a moment there was silence as they stared helplessly at each other. Eli finally caught up, stopping a short distance back and setting his hands on his knees. He did not have a great deal of time to catch his breath, however: after mere seconds Anise stepped gingerly over to him, Zona still unconscious in her tail-hands.

"Take him," she snapped, and Eli, obviously scared stiff and willing to obey any order as long as it did not involve facing the enraged Ninetales, complied, taking the Vulpix into his own gray-colored hands. "Gently! Don't jar him too badly or you'll make the leg worse."

"Miss Anise…" wheezed Leo, uncertain of what she was doing. She turned back toward him, eyes fierce.

"You two are going to take Zona and run into the Mystery Dungeon. I need to go back and help Cirrus. What she did was brave, but foolish, and I've _got _to help her." Both of her tails extended and each pointed a single finger at the two other Pokémon. "I _will_ catch up to you later. Keep Zona safe."

"Miss Anise, what was she talking about? What's so special about Zona? Was she even telling the truth?"

"I don't know, precisely," the Ambipom replied shortly, pulling the bag from over her shoulder and slinging it around Leo's neck. "Go, you two. Keep him safe. Get through the Dungeon. Cirrus and I will find you on the other side, I promise."

Without waiting for so much as a "Yes, Miss," she took off, and now that she was unburdened she moved like lightning, alternating between dashing on her stubby paws and flinging herself forward on her lithe, dexterous tails. Leo stared after her for a minute, praying fervently to whichever gods were listening that she—and Cirrus—survived.

"Leo," said Eli eventually. He turned back. The Machop had Zona firmly in his grasp, with the Vulpix's stomach and legs turned in so that the vibration of movement would not jar his leg so badly.

"Um, right," said Leo, sending one glance back toward the ruins of the village and the rapidly-shrinking purple dot that was Miss Anise; then, forcing her from his mind, he looked forward again, noticing only now that they had to be within feet of the beginning of the Dungeon's distortion. Was he shaking? Growling, the Shinx steadied himself, feeling his Spark wake up inside him again. He had to get through—for his sake, for Anise's, but most importantly for Zona's.

"Let's go, Eli."

"You got it."

**Ashwood Arbor S1**

Leo could tell instantly when they passed the threshold into the Dungeon: with a rustling and creaking of old wood, the trees around them seemed to bend backward around them, preventing their escape. Eli swallowed nervously, looking to the Shinx in askance. Leo looked back, uncertain: neither of them seemed well-qualified to be leaders, and both of them were burdened…

He looked over his shoulder at the bag slung across his back, and then nodded, coming to a decision.

"Eli, follow after me, alright? And let me do all the fighting."

"But what if—"

"Eli, listen!" the Shinx exclaimed, bouncing. "Zona's too much for me to carry: you're the only one who can get him through here, so you've gotta stay safe and just leave all the fighting to me."

"What about the bag?" asked the Machop.

"What's more important‽" exclaimed Leo, growling. "What's more important‽ A few lousy pieces of fruit and an Orb or two, or somebody's life‽"

The Fighting-type stared blankly back at him for a second before, reluctantly, nodding. "Alright…"

"If something happens to me, just run, okay? Just take Zona and run."

Confusion was evident in the Machop's face, but he did not say anything right away and the two began to move, Leo forging several body lengths ahead and keeping a careful eye out, squinting and calling desperately upon his Spark to help him see through any obstructions. So far, they were alone.

"Why are you all so selfless?" asked Eli after several minutes of walking. The sudden sound of the other's voice caught Leo off guard, and he froze, fur fluffing out and sparks flying off in every direction. "Sorry… It's just… First the Squirtle, then your Captain, an' now you, you're all willing to throw your lives away… for Zona, right? Why?"

"Because he trusts us," replied the Shinx proudly. "Because for a long time he would sit off by himself and not talk or nothing, but now, just yesterday, he told me that he wanted to trust me. That he wanted to trust all of us. And I want to make good on that. I want to show that his trust isn't a mistake."

His face seemed to darken.

"And my mommy… I… when I had to run away, she…"

He shook his head. "Never mind. Let's… let's just keep going."

* * *

**Ashwood Arbor S2**

"…_piiiiix."_

Leo had been so focused on looking ahead, at focusing his power to see through objectsin front of them, that at first he did not hear Zona begin to wake up. The Fire-type moaned again, senseless gibberish that nevertheless managed to pierce through the Shinx's self-possession this time.

"_Vuuul…piiiiix…."_

"What is it?" he asked quietly, turning around. Eli held the Vulpix out slightly, and the fox's head rolled back and forth slightly. A single bleary eye opened and seemed to have trouble seeing anything before focusing laboriously on the Shinx.

"Trees…" Zona muttered weakly.

"Zona, it's alright. We got away. We're in the Mystery Dungeon, just me and you and Eli, but we're okay. All we need to do is get through here, Miss Anise'll catch up with Cirrus, then we'll high-tail it outta here back to the Base!"

"Trees… _Trees…_"

Leo stepped closer. "What about the trees?"

"Trees… some can… attack…" The dull brown eye seemed to flit back and forth nervously. "Hard to tell… some try to catch…"

"The _trees_ can attack?"

"Vines…" The Vulpix's eye rolled wildly, and Leo saw white. "You can't burn… not hot… stay away from tre_piiiix_…" His words turned back to nonsense as he trailed off, and the one eye closed again. Leo looked up at Eli.

"Okay. Sounds simple enough. Steer clear of the trees." The Machop smiled weakly. "We're only _surrounded _by trees."

Leo turned back and surveyed some of the nearby trees worriedly. They all looked the same to him, old and gnarly, with ugly green vines growing up and down the trunks and choking some of the low-hanging branches. If any of them were likely to attack, he couldn't tell.

"Umm, okay," he said finally. "Just follow me exactly. If I get caught… well, I'll just bite my way out of it." He bared his fangs. "Some of my friends on the Team tell me I talk so much, I've gotta have really strong jaws!"

"You did talk an awful lot on the way to the town," agreed Eli light-heartedly. Slowly, Leo began to creep forward again, and the gray biped stepped gingerly after him. "You haven't been talkin' much now, though."

"Can't," said the Shinx. "I've gotta focus, so I can keep looking ahead through stuff."

"Do _what?_"

"So I can—you don't know?" Leo looked over his shoulder skeptically. "Well, if I focus real hard I can sometimes see through stuff, so I can always tell if something's coming—"

_Thwack!_

Something wrapped itself suddenly around his midsection, and the Shinx felt himself being lifted rapidly off of the ground. The bag slipped off of his head as he flailed, instinctively trying to bite and claw at the enemy that he couldn't quite reach. It felt like only a single vine, but even the single strand had immense strength, and for all his struggles the Shinx only managed to exhaust himself.

"Leo!" Eli shouted, and dimly he heard Zona moan fitfully. Instantly he had an idea.

_You can't burn them_, the Vulpix had said. Had he been talking literally, or had he just meant that Leo didn't have any abilities that used fire? Well, that was true, he had to admit, even as the vine was drawing him up toward the tree's middle branches. But just because he didn't have _fire_ didn't mean he couldn't _burn_ something.

His upward motion stopped, suspended sideways with the vine still wrapped around his middle, rotating like a Drifloon in a weak crosswind. Slowly, as he twisted, a huge mass of vines came into view: a gigantic tangle of teal-colored vines with a black mass somewhere in the center from which two shiny eyes stared out at him.

"_Tangrowth_," said the mass simply.

Leo growled, pulling his Spark from as deep inside him as he could, feeling his entire body light up with electricity. The Tangrowth stared blankly back at him, apparently not feeling or not caring what its meal was doing. That was fine by him, the Shinx reasoned, as with a high-pitched yowling noise he released all the pent-up energy in every direction, lightning shooting off from his fur and leaving scorch marks on the dry tree bark. The creature holding him screeched in pain and flung him violently away. The Shinx sailed uncontrolled through the air until another tree trunk suddenly stopped his motion.

The impact left him both dazed and winded, and he might even have passed out for a moment, because the next thing he knew he was lying on his side on the ground, and… everything was blurry, but was it lighter out now? The Mystery Dungeon had been so dark, with trees close about in every direction, blocking out the sunlight. It seemed so much brighter now, though… and that purple thing heading toward him, that couldn't be Miss Anise, could it? No one could ever find anyone else inside a Mystery Dungeon, except for…

"Leo!"

It was certainly Miss Anise's voice. The Shinx tried to stand up, but he was still dizzy and short of breath, so he collapsed again right away. The Ambipom drew even with him, and for the first time he saw that she was holding Cirrus' shell tightly between her tails.

"Cirrus…?"

"She's okay," replied Anise instantly, reaching forward with her stumpy paws to help Leo back up. "She's just drawn back up inside right now, the poor dear… She's scared and exhausted, but she's okay. What about you?"

"M'okay," said Leo, shaking his head to clear it. "I got picked up and thrown around by a big teal-colored Pokémon, but other than that I'm okay. I dropped the bag, though, and—"

"Where's Zona?" asked Anise suddenly.

"Zona's—Eli's got—oh, no, where—?" Leo looked around, noticing for the first time that he was now in a clearing. The reason everything looked brighter was because it _was_ brighter, but not by much: the sky visible through the circle of trees was overcast and murky, and rain seemed only a few minutes away. The Electric-type danced to the side for a moment, and saw that Eli, still carrying Zona, and having obviously picked up the bag, was standing in the middle of the clearing, looking around uncertainly. "There!"

"But how did I find you?" Anise asked. "One of the basic tenets of Mystery Dungeons is that once you go in you can't be found by anyone else—" She broke off, wide-eyed. "Unless it's a—"

Leo was already sprinting as fast as he could toward the center of the field, toward Eli, toward Zona, before—

"_You fools!_"

A golden shape tore out of the forest and toward Zona, far faster than Leo could hope to run. Desperate, and though he still felt drained from unleashing so much power all at once, the Shinx pulled up the last of his Spark's energy and tried to direct it at the oncoming Ninetales, but the lightning arced wide and he collapsed, exhausted and unable to stop her from advancing.

_Please, Raikou, Zapdos, oh, please, Dialga, Palkia, oh _Arceus_, somebody, please, help…_

**Zona**

He woke up as soon as he felt her approaching. And he _could_ feel her approaching: he had learned what her mind felt like when she had tried to force her way into his, and now that she was enraged she was making no efforts to, or perhaps was simply unable to, keep her mental powers at bay, and the feeling of wave after wave of unbridled rage crashing against his mind pulled him from his stupor. His leg still throbbed in time with his heartbeat, each pulse sending biting-cold pain throughout his entire body, but somehow he was able to set the agony aside. He had to focus on _her_, had to stop her, or they would all be dead and his broken leg would be largely irrelevant.

When he tried to speak it came out as a pained moan at first, one he'd been suppressing. As much as he was trying to ignore it, the leg _still hurt_. It took only a second for his head to clear fully, however, and then he muttered. "Put me down…"

Eli did not hear him, obviously and understandably transfixed by the massive Fire Pokémon rushing toward him. Zona tried again, more forcefully.

"Eli, _put me down_…"

"Wh-what‽" exclaimed the Fighting-type. "Zona, she'll _kill _you!"

"Please!" said Zona. "Please, Eli, just put me down. I… I have to try…"

"What can you do, Zona_ferior‽_" He was panicking, and in his fear had reverted back to name-calling. "Your thrice-blessed _leg's_ broken!"

"Just do it!" snapped Zona, forcing his head up to look at Eli. The biped stared back at him incredulously, but when Zona's intense gaze remained the same, unflinching and determined, he nodded.

"Alright… S'your funeral, wimp," he mocked half-heartedly, before setting the Vulpix gently on the ground and turning to run. "… But seriously, don't die!"

The fox barely heard him, staring out at the still-oncoming shape that was his mother.

"You _fools!_" she roared again. "I am no simple soldier, easily baffled and defied by my prey leaping into such an arcane abomination! I am a Magister-Colonel: I know my trade inside and out, and to see all of you fleeing through this cursed wood was no task at all!"

She slowed as she approached him, coming to a stop three body lengths—mere feet—away from him. He derived some sort of perverse pleasure from seeing that, despite all her boasts that tracking them had been easy, she was winded. Her exhaustion did not dim her fury, however: her eyes were bright beacons in the gray light of the overcast sky, and the force of her rage was still smashing itself against his mind.

"You offer yourself up as the first to die, do you?" she sneered at him. "Allowing your friends to flee while you lie there with your injured leg. Are you terrified to be a burden? Do you detest the idea that you are slowing your friends down? Why, how _noble_ of you, Zonaphèras," she mocked. "How selfless! You are the very image of your father, and for a time I loved that about him! But now the very idea that you are anything like him sickens me! You are no son of mine!"

"How easily you cast me aside," said Zona quietly. "I wonder, Mother, do you mean that?"

"I lied to your father from the moment I met him, kit, but to you I will never be dishonest. I owe you that much."

"You are resolved, then." The Vulpix's voice was resigned.

"I am indeed. You are no more than a traitor who has declared his defiance to the Master. My duty to him is to kill all who would declare that he is anything less than their omnipotent ruler!"

"Are you naught but an obedient Growlithe?" countered Zona. "Running around at his beck and call, a slave to every word he says?"

"The Master's—"

"_The Master's word is law,_" he snapped, overriding her. "And do I not know that? How many times did you think that as you sent the request for the soldiers? How many times did you repeat it to yourself as you killed Father? One who is absolutely sure of her goals should not need such a mantra."

"_Are you insulting my resolve‽_" Miranda's voice was wavering indignantly.

"Every other sentence from your mouth. The Master's word is law; the Master's word is law. Why are you repeating it so often to yourself if you are so certain of its truth?" Zona shook his head weakly. "I do not seek to insult your resolve, I am merely questioning it. And here is my question: If there were no Master, would you have any will left at all?"

There was the barest hint of hesitation before she answered. "What a foolish question. The Master has always been, and will always be. Your question is without meaning. The Master's…"

"Are you anything at all without the Master? Father is dead, and you have never mentioned any other family. You have disowned me: so the Master must be the only thing left, the only thing that you care about, the only thing that drives you. What will you do when he falls?" With his leg as it was, he was basically immobile, but he raised his head as high as he could and stared intently into her eyes—her dull carmine eyes, no longer glowing. Had he cooled her rage? "And he _will fall_ some day, I assure you of that. The Master is a cruel tyrant and as long as he continues to flaunt his power and flout his responsibility of just government, we will keep fighting, we will keep resisting, we will continue to be a thorn in your collective side until he gives up the ghost."

"Then you are as waves throwing themselves fruitlessly against the cliffs," sneered Miranda.

"But even the waves eventually wear the cliffs to sand," replied Zona softly.

"Enough!" roared Miranda, eyes lighting up again. "I have had enough of you and your troublesome talk!" In a flash she was standing over him, fangs bared. "Now you will die the same as your traitor father!"

He stared silently back up at her, not resisting. Her fangs were bared, and she was snarling down at him menacingly. And yet, for all her bluster, she did not move.

"Are you hesitating?" Zona didn't know what it was that was driving him to speak, to attempt to rationalize with her even now; he simply give into it, because the alternative was certain death. "If you will not kill me so easily as you killed Father, then let me speak. My last words are not cocky defiance, they are not a foolish, arrogant claim that I will be avenged. My last words are truth."

"Truth? Amoscandar claimed to speak the truth and yet everything from his mouth was a lie. You are no different!" Roaring, she brought her head down to his neck.

Zonaphèras squealed, "I love you, Mommy!"

And then he froze, because she had also frozen, fangs around his windpipe. If he moved—if he so much as breathed—her bite would kill him even unfinished. They stayed there, he flat on his back, she with her maw locked around his throat, for several minutes, and neither moved. All around them was silence.

Finally, with excruciating slowness, the pressure of Miranda's fangs lessened and then vanished completely. Her head came back into view, and her eyes were no longer alight, but dull and listless. Confusion began to roil behind the fox's carmine eyes, and she turned and staggered a short distance away from him before, almost sulkily, her head swung back around to look at him.

"Truth indeed," she moaned, trembling again. "And such truth. Amoscandar's words never rang with such sincerity."

He stared silently back at her. Minutes passed. Finally, his mother spoke again, in the same flat voice she had used when they had first stumbled across her.

"Go, Zonaphèras. You and your companions. Return to wherever it is you call home now. I would advise you to hurry: rain is imminent and sunset only a few hours away. Pain you it might, but I would suggest you seek shelter in what is left of our village until the rain and the night pass."

Again, he said nothing.

"I will let you all go for now. Your so-called truth has left me with no argument, and were I to kill you now I would lose whatever honor I claim to retain." She hesitated, still shaking slightly. "I… Zona, I…"

She stopped suddenly and closed her eyes, seeming to gather herself. Slowly, she opened them again.

"Go. Rejoice in your new happy family. Perhaps… perhaps they will make you a better Pokémon than ever I could."

Slowly she stood and began to pad away stopping again when she was almost to the trees and looking back at him one more time. Zona thought he saw her mouth move, but from where he was he could not tell what she had said. Mirandalys turned forward and stood tall and proud and walked into the trees: and then she was gone.

When the other Resistance members finally ran up to him again, they found him trembling with relief, and as he tried to tell them exactly what had transpired he had to stop and start over again several times, tripping over his own words. Eventually he got around to telling them what Miranda had suggested; Anise agreed with a nervous glance at the sky, and then Eli picked him up gently again and they all turned and began to tread out of the Arbor, trying to escape before the Dungeon's curse took hold again. Zona passed out from relief almost instantly, but he was sure that, just before he did, he saw a flash of light out near the middle of the field, but because it had just started to rain he would never be sure if it was a raindrop or a teardrop.

* * *

A/N: Mirandalys: MEER-ann-DAH-liss / Miranda: Mih-RAND-uh


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I feel like I should say something here, but I'll leave it for later.

Pokémon and all related official material belong to Nintendo et al. Ambera and Leo belong to ScytheRider. Everything else in this chapter is mine.

* * *

**Chapter 9**

… Where was he?

It felt more like waking from a dream than anything: slowly the world seemed to fill in around him, from a black void to cold brownstone on all sides; and then slowly details became apparent, gaps and windows opened up. The evening sun was streaming through an opening, creating a long, warm patch of stone. It was here that he was lying, comfortable. The air was still, but comfortably cool; the house was drab, but not _barren_: more like it had been cleaned out after a long period of disuse and mess and hadn't had a chance to be refurbished yet.

This was _his house_…

… But something… felt _wrong_.

Where was everyone else? What had happened to the rain? … Why was he _here?_

He stood up suddenly, and was surprised to find his leg didn't hurt. He held it out in front of him just to make sure: indeed, no pain or throbbing or even a hint of weakness. It was as if his leg had never been broken at all.

_This… isn't right_.

He had to be dreaming again—had to be back in the same place that the Ghosts in Blackriver City had sent him. What had sent him here this time? He wasn't scared or lost or anything, really—he was just tired and relieved.

He padded to the door and looked out. Yes, there was no doubt about it now: this was not real. Leppa Town lay spread out before him as it had been before Miranda's flames had burnt it out. The path stood clear in either direction: grass and fences and houses filled his vision. And yet… and yet it was entirely silent and still. There was no wind—and not a cloud floated in the violet-tinged evening sky. As well, the more he looked, the more he noticed… imperfections, things that didn't look right to his eyes. The edges of things in the distance were blurry, and farther out all of the houses seemed to become the same shape, facing the same direction: a series of similar objects placed at regular intervals.

Almost as if… a memory. An imperfect snapshot of a single moment of life in the village.

Why… was he _here_?

Behind him, there was the soft sound of paws on solid stone. Instantly his ears perked and he spun around, surprised to find that he was not alone.

The golden figure seemed silhouetted against the light coming in from the window, but if anything that made him more recognizable. He sat serene in the middle of the room, tails spread comfortably behind him, with regret bright in his glittering crimson eyes.

"Zonaphèras, my son…"

He stared back, dumbfounded, muzzle hanging open, as his father—and it _was _his father this time, not some pale imitation or memory or reflection of his subconscious—regarded him for a long moment and then, finally, slowly, bowed low to the ground.

"… I am so sorry."

"…_Father_?" he blurted stupidly.

But there was no denying it: even here, in this dream world, he felt so _real_—he had always had an overwhelming presence, if a silent one: he had been the kind of Pokémon that, when he entered into a room, caused heads to turn and conversations to stall for just a moment, just because of the way he carried himself. He positively _radiated_ calmness, and yet at the same time he carried such a proud nobleness about him, and to see such nobleness prostrated on the ground—to see his own _father _bowing down to _him_—somehow felt… wrong to him. But the overwhelming _realness _of Amos' presence was undeniable.

"I am sorry," rumbled the Ninetales again in his deep voice.

"S-s-sorry…?"

"I am sorry for my ignorance. I am sorry for my foolish idealism. I am sorry that I failed you. I am sorry that I refused to learn from my mistakes. I am sorry that my failure has caused you pain—I am sorry that I abandoned you, that I was not strong enough, quick enough. I am sorry that I have left you this heavy burden and this terrible legacy.

"I am sorry… for my dishonesty toward you, my son, for my foolish hope that I could perhaps keep you safe and out of the conflict that I myself was unable to face."

"You're… you're _dead_," Zona continued.

"Yes," acknowledged Amoscandar gravely, sitting back on his haunches again. "Yes, I… have passed on. I was weak for a moment, and in that moment I lost almost everything…" He closed his eyes. "But you, at least… you are still alive… and you have begun to heal," he added quietly, smiling slightly. It was one of the few times Zona had ever seen his father smile. "You have experienced the extremes of emotion, Zonaphèras: from fear to anger to fury to desolation to despair to joy to contentment. But for so long you have let your fear and your uncertainty consume you, have you not? And now, look at you—you have faced down your fear, quashed your terror in the face of death. In your time with the Shinx, and yes, I know about the Shinx, have you not also experienced joy and happiness? Have you not, perhaps, found a friend?"

"Y-yes," said Zona finally. "Yes… I… Maybe I _have_…"

"But for all your experience with emotion, do you think you have felt everything there is to feel? Do you feel you understand yourself better for your ordeals?"

A short silence, as Zona pondered.

"No—not entirely."

Amos cocked his head slightly.

"But… better than I did before, yes," finished Zona.

"You are wise," declared Amos, nodding. "Only a fool would ever say he knows himself through and through. For it is not given that any mortal should ever fully understand the mystery of the heart. But cast that aside for now, my son, and listen: I have things that must be said."

There was a pause.

"I am not from Ambera," said the Ninetales bluntly. "I have told you lies before. Know that what I will tell you know is unfiltered truth. I was not born here. I am an outsider, born in the lands to the east, from whence the sun rises. I was raised by my mother, with only a vague memory of my father's presence and a lingering memory of his name. I was called Norusephas, then, and though I was not the eldest among those in my den I was the shrewdest. I kept watch over the other kits in the den, protected them, taught them when I knew of something that they did not. One day I was out with one of my sisters and humans stumbled upon us; I had to bite my sibling to get her to flee, and so she did, but in the process of humans managed to capture me."

"C-capture? Wh—?"

"The matter is complex and in any case irrelevant. What is important is that I was taken away from my home and my family, and very nearly killed for my coat: humans prize Vulpix fur above a great many things for its fire-resistant nature. I was saved by a certain benevolent man, whose name was called Conrad, and he took me and trained me and raised me and taught me a great many things about life. It was in his care that I evolved. It was he who gave me my name: Amos. For he saw that the burden of losing my family was heavy on my heart, and never left me.

"But it is the nature of our species to outlast: Conrad aged and grew old and I remained the same, strong and proud and vivid in my shining golden coat of fur. Eventually he died, and I was left alone. His other Pokémon—and he possessed more than a few—were passed on to other members of his family, as is the human custom in that part of the world. None of them wanted me: indeed, they were all frightened of me, that I had seen their relative grow old and die from a vibrant young man, that I had been young when he had been young and I was young even then when he had aged and died; and they knew that I would do the same to any of them. I was rejected by all of them and so I was left to my own devices.

"I returned to my former home, and found no trace of fox anywhere in the region. My family was gone, whether captured or killed or simply moved I would never learn. Lost and confused and for the first time totally uncertain of what to do, I sat down and waited to die."

There was a moment of silence. Zona sat entranced by his father's words, as he'd done many an evening when he was younger.

"I will not tell you how I came to be in Ambera, for the matter is again complex and largely irrelevant. I was simply offered the chance to escape from the human world, to escape from their politics and their fears and their confusing culture, and come to a place build entirely on the efforts of Pokémon. I took that chance. Never you mind what you have heard of me: when I arrived the Master was already in power and had established his rule with an iron will. I predated the Resistance, yes, but not its cause. I showed up in a new land, naïve and confused as a newborn. I settled in a community in the eastern part of the continent, a community of Pokémon like me, who had come from the world of humans and had learned to adapt to the rules of Ambera. There were other Ninetales in the village, and from them I earned the rest of my name, so that once again I bore a full name: Amoscandar. I learned from them of the Watchers—though they were not nearly so bad in those days; indeed, they were more of a rumor than a fact—and of the Master and his cruel habits.

"I did not at first feel the call to rebel. The Master was a vague figure, a threat that loomed far away and that I barely needed to worry about. Indeed, the Resistance started mostly without me, and I ignore them even when I learned about them. I had not been bothered by the Master and felt I had no reason to fight against a foe who had not wronged me."

Another pause. When he spoke again, his voice was rougher and his eyes were smoldering slightly.

"I do not to this day know what the cause was, but one day the Master came down hard upon my village much like he did Leppa Town, suddenly and violently. Many were slain. I managed to escape, bringing with me several of the children that had been in the village." He hesitated. "I did not know her then, but your mother was among those children. Little Miranda, the queer quiet vixen. But love is fickle, and when I saw her next she was a Ninetales and a beautiful one.

"In any case," he continued, perhaps too quickly, "I escaped, bringing the children to Great Crystal City and leaving them in the care of competent individuals. I myself took off the same day I arrived, storming off into the wilds of Ambera to find the Resistance and join their ranks. The Master had made an enemy of me, and he would know of it before long, if I had my say in it. The last traces of the naïve Norusephas son of Kheskearos had been wiped out: I was Amoscandar son of None, an outsider, wise and strong and out for vengeance.

"In the intervening years my burning fury waned. I fought against the Master, yes, but I learned prudence: I learned to fight small battles first and then move on to large ones. I became a pillar of the Gold Division: I was there when the renowned Scythe was but a trainee, when the mighty Prince and his team were virtually unknown among the rank and file of the Resistance. I learned to pass off my leadership to certain trusted others, learned that sometimes a break—a chance to lead a normal life—was helpful and indeed necessary. I met your mother, and fell in love with her, and…" There was a moment of silence. "I continued my work even after Lykios was born. He grasped above everything else my love for words and made it his own; but for all that he was an honest soul. I made him swear that he would not mention my comings and goings—for I was still active in the Resistance when he was young—and he obeyed me and kept my nature secret from Miranda. I now suspect she was doing something of the same in return, but of course I cannot be sure."

_Lykios…? Who is Lykios?_

He paused.

"I could continue, but what needs must be said is this: up until my retirement I was a well-known and respected member of the Resistance. I had an established way of doing things, and was renowned for my strength and my wisdom and my prowess in battle. But there is something I want you to know. My reputation is mine, and you do not need to live up to it if you do not feel you are able. I would not hate you for it, and no one else should either.

"You are your own being, Zonaphèras," rumbled Amos. "Do not ever think you are not. You belong to no one but yourself, a blessing of living in Ambera. Even the Master himself does not own you, for all that he might think he does. I say this… because no doubt everyone has been expecting you to live up to my standards. I am not wrong?"

"N-no…" said Zona after a moment.

"They are fools, then. You are not me. You are not your mother. You are someone… new. Someone that inherits the legacy of your forebears but shapes it to his own will. You can choose to finish what I started or to abandon it entirely. You have already denied your mother's destiny for you; but that does not mean you have chosen mine. I do not believe that, and you should not let anyone else convince you of that. Am I understood, Zonaphèras?"

"Yes, Father."

"Having said that…" The Ninetales paused, narrowing his eyes and looking off to the side. "I… must express again how much of a fool I was to leave you out of the Resistance. How much of a fool I was to lie to you, to tell you so little of my life—and to shroud what I did tell you under the guise of lies. I was called wise, once, do you know? My life was long and full of experience, and I had learned much. I made it my business to help others, to teach them when they did not understand, to help them make sense of the chaos of life. But for all I was declared wise… I refused to learn from my own mistakes: I stubbornly chose to leave you in the dark, to keep you from knowing a thing about my life, just as I had done with Lykios. And now look at you: just like your brother, a trainee at the Gold Division. I have failed again, and now…" He shook his head. "Now, as much as I would like to, learning from my mistakes will do me no good. Ah, that I had simply refused to come to Ambera…"

"Ly…My _brother?_" He had always been told he had no siblings… and now his father was telling him that he had—or had at one point had—a brother?

"But all the same the situation for you is different. Far different… I was also unwise in my choosing of a mate, as you might imagine. Yes, there is the fact that she killed me, but more than that… Ah, love is a fickle thing, Zonaphèras, and difficult to control. I suppose I could not have fought it even if I had thought to. But if I had bothered to pay attention to her, to study her… Her abilities, her Psychic prowess, and my command of the Ember…"

"What are you talking about, Father?" Zona took a step forward. "Mother talked about something… like I had a power or something that I didn't know about. Did… did you know about that, _too?_"

"I… had a suspicion," admitted Amos hesitantly. "After you were touched by the Watchers…" He paused. "I do not seek to make light of your condition, my child. Certainly not—for fear is not something to be made light of. But I have seen many touched by the Watchers in my lifetime, and of all of them you escaped with the least lasting damage. All you retained was the idea of fear: I have seen Pokémon struck by unending nightmares, by hallucinations; I have seen those who seem to have no soul left after their encounter with those phantasms, who slowly pine away and die. All things considered you ended up with very little damage, compared to what _could _have happened."

Zona looked down, saying nothing.

"Yes, I hid these suspicions from you," admitted Amoscandar slowly, reaching out a forepaw and nudging his head back up. "But would you have trusted me if I had told you? More importantly, would you have kept the secret from your mother? I could not trust you with it. Before you ask," he added, noticing Zona's sudden inquisitive glance, "yes, I knew she was in service to the Master, or at least I strongly suspected that that was where her allegiance rested. I did not count on her being so strong, of course, or so fast; that was another one of my failures. But I did at least suspect her: Lykios did not share any of my comings or goings with her, for which I was grateful. In any case… your power has granted you resistance to the Watchers, small as it may be. A lesser Pokémon would not have fared nearly so well as you!"

"What _is_ the power?" Zona snapped finally, almost cutting Amoscandar off. The bigger Pokémon started nervously, surprised at the Vulpix's boldness. "Would you stop avoiding the question and simply tell me…? Why is it that I, as you call it, _resist_," and he stressed the word bitterly, "the Watchers? What is my power, that I should be a weapon against them?"

"Yours is a power born of both the mind and the body, Zonaphèras. Yours is rooted in the Psychic ability to tear into others' minds and influence them; rooted in the mighty power of the Ember that lights the world and purifies evil. Yours is a power born of natural potential—of powers inherited from your forebears that you have bent and shaped to fit yourself and your own will. What you possess… is everything the Call is not."

"…And this Call?" Zona asked. "I've heard it mentioned several times, but everyone seems to assume I know what it is." He probably should have been feeling amazed that his father was standing before him, or relieved, but no: anger was beginning to seep through again, at his father's apparent neglect and dishonesty. "Another thing you left me in the dark about…"

"The Call…" Amos blinked. "… Yes. I am sorry…"

This time it was the Ninetales who looked down. A moment passed in silence.

"The Call," said Amoscandar, "is the power that will turn the tide of the war with the Master in one way or another. It is a power that manifests itself only rarely, and in varying levels of power. The Call is a power unbound by species or type: any Pokémon can possess it, from the calm Water-type to the meek Grass-type to the raging Fire-type to the strong-willed Psychic-type. The Call manifests itself when it will and how it will, often without prompting or control from the one who wields it.

"The Call… is basically a mental distress call: depending on its level of power it can reach from mere feet to perhaps miles upon miles around the wielder. Every Pokémon that falls under its sway is drawn irresistibly to the source, even if they cannot identify why it is they are coming or who it is they are seeking. It is the rare Pokémon indeed that can recognize it for what it really is. In particularly strong cases it can even draw the Watchers into bright light or buildings that they would not normally enter, or even summon the great gods that shaped the world." The Ninetales closed his eyes for a moment, breathing. "You… have already experienced a Call of such magnitude."

Zona stared back at him, but he didn't see the other Pokémon: his mind had gone back to the last time he had found himself in this house in a dream, besieged by phantoms and illusions of the one who now stood before him.

_**PLEASE, HELP ME!**_

"The Call…" breathed Zona. That had been the Call, that flood of noise and emotion that had pulled him from his coma. "That… How did you know that?"

"But your power is what the Call is not. Your power is natural and to be expected given your parentage, to the Call's arbitrariness. Your power is capable of being controlled, whereas the Call rises of its own will. Perhaps most importantly, the Call draws Pokémon near… where yours drives them away." He was silent for a minute or two, gathering his thoughts. "This… not-Call. I have seen it before, though only rarely, and never outside of our species. Always, always, the one who bears it has inherited immeasurable potential extrasensory abilities from one parent and masterful control of the Ember from the other. "

"…So… This power… drives everyone else away?" asked Zona. "But… what good will that do me? I don't want to be alone…"

"Then you must learn to control it. If used unwisely or without a clear head it will do precisely that: everyone around you will be driven away, terrified, panicking, knowing nothing but the desire to flee from you, meek as you are. So what you must do is rein it in: learn to control it, learn to use it for its true purpose."

"Which is…?"

"To drive away the Watchers." Amos pawed absently at the floor. "I possess the power in a limited fashion. I have never been a great student of the ways of Psychics and in any case I have always had a great deal of control over my emotions. The power hardly ever rose for me. When you had been touched, however—when the Watchers held you within their grasp and were suffocating you, for the first time in my life the power rose up. I used it to save you. You remember, yes?"

"Mostly…" admitted Zona.

"And yet it did not drive you away. It did not drive Miranda away. That is the beauty of the power: the Call is limited—indeed, single-minded—in its nature. It will summon everyone and everything with a mind that hears it. But your power, this not-Call, is different. If for whatever reason you were to call it up without cause, or when you were unable to focus entirely on it, it would simply burst out from you, a wave of fear and panic and chaos and you would be left alone. But…"

Amos paused, muzzle half-open and ears perked, as if hearing something.

"Ah… your companions are speaking. Can you hear them?

Wh-what are those?

The Watchers…?

Don't worry, they can't come in here. They'll hover around the doors and the windows but they can't come in. You'll just have to ignore them and get to sleep.

A chill traveled down Zona's spine and his tails poofed out nervously.

"Th-the Watchers, are….?"

"It _is_ nighttime," admitted Amos, shrugging. "But your captain is correct: they will not invade your shelter."

Miss Anise, it's cold…

They… they keep staring. They keep staring at me…

I know, dears… I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do.

What about Zona? He's shivering…

The Vulpix looked up at his father skeptically.

"They will not _invade_," said Amoscandar again. "But that only means they will not come in and touch you. They will hover outside and sneer and stare and terrify until morning."

This has got to be so hard for him…

"That's…" Zona shivered. "That's not _right_." Fear was welling up within him now—an irrational fear, sparked by the presence of the Watchers he could not see. But there was also anger welling up, too, which was an emotion he'd never associated with the Watchers before. The Watchers were coldness, and fear, and pain.

"It is beginning," rumbled Amos slowly. "You are aware of the power now, and it is responding to your call: it is being stirred awake by your emotions."

"How… how can I sit here like this?" Zona had barely heard his father speak. "If I have this power…"

"Do not be so quick to assume, Zonaphèras," said his father sternly. "For perhaps the first time in your life your Ember is truly stirring, awoken for a greater purpose, prepared to do battle. The blaze that sits deep within you is influencing your mind—making you angry, making you perhaps too confident. This not-Call does not make you invincible. It does not mean you should not fear the Watchers. The Watchers _are_ fear, and you are right to be afraid of them."

"But I can stop them—I can keep everyone safe from them—I can prevent any of them from ending up like me—"

"_Focus_, Zonaphèras!" snapped Amos, and Zona looked up at him, pulled out of his furious contemplation. "This power is not one to be made light of! The slightest lapse in your focus, the slightest errant thought, will distort the power and you will accomplish exactly the opposite of what you desire. If you are not prepared, your mind skewed by anger and fear, then you will force your companions away from you and send them fleeing, even to the Watchers.

"'Ware, Zonaphèras, or rather than preventing more from becoming like you, you will only hasten the process."

"Then what must I do?" growled Zona after a moment.

"Rein in your emotions. That is all the not-Call is, at heart. By itself it simply impresses your latent negative emotion onto everyone around you. But what good will sending fear out to the Watchers do, if the Watchers are fear? None at all. So suppress your emotions. Bind them deep within you, bind them deep inside your Ember and let it consume them. Let your Ember burn brighter for all that you have fed it—and let it build and build until you feel you are ready to explode. At the same time, feel the pressure in your mind grow—so that it feels your head and your mind are being crushed under the weight of your latent power. And then… you release it."

He was still shaking. He was tingling all over, as though he'd just been shocked by Leo. Despite himself, he was growling.

Is—is Zona okay?

He's growling—maybe he can feel the Watchers—oh man, oh man, this is bad, we should never have come…

"You are prepared, Zonaphèras," said Amos softly. "The time is now. You are no longer a drifter. You possess the potential to shape the world, to shape Ambera, to topple the Master. Now rise, Zonaphèras! Fear was once used as a weapon against you: you now can use it as a weapon against your foes. Fire was used to destroy the place you called home: now you can use fire to protect those dear to you."

The world was beginning to fade out. Amos' voice echoed as the Ninetales gradually turned transparent and faded with the stone around him.

"Now shape the world, Sona fey Raz! Rise, and take your destiny into your own paws—and fight for a world where none must be governed by fear!"

Zonaphèras opened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was the sickly yellow pallor of a Watcher's eyes, a massive Haunter staring in from the window. He could tell instantly that he was in his own house—how the others had managed to find it with him unconscious he did not know.

"Zona…?"

Leo had somehow noticed him waking up; he had been lying, unable to sleep, not a paw-length from Zona, and as soon as he noticed the Vulpix's eyes open he leapt to his paws.

"I-it's alright, Zona, nothing's wrong, you can go back to sleep—"

Zona narrowed his eyes slightly. He was still focused on the Watcher at the window—and though the thought that there was a phantom so close to him terrified him on some subconscious level, all he felt on the surface was anger. He could see—no, he could _feel_ the fear in every move the Shinx made, and how terror tightened his voice. And the Watchers were the cause of it.

He began to growl again, a purple tinge fading into the edges of his vision. Hadn't they done enough damage? Weren't there already enough Pokémon like him wandering the continent? There would be no more, if he had his say—no more like him, none cursed by fear and unending terror and emotional agony. None—not a one.

"Zona, are you alr—" The Shinx cut himself off with a yelp. Fire was flowing out of Zona's muzzle—but not orange or blue or even white fire, but violet, phantasmal flames that seemed to wrap around him protectively. Leo backed up, uncertain of what was happening; though he could not see any of the others from where he lay, he could hear each of them stirring awake and expressing shock and fear. The flames continued to emerge and cover Zona, turning him into a purple-tinged pyre from which ruby eyes blazed out like hot coals. The cold chill of the Watchers' presence faded out, replaced by a comfortable warmth.

He stood. There was not so much as a twinge of pain in his leg: the flames clustered around the break and held it steady. The Watcher in the window continued to regard him blankly. He stared at it for a moment dispassionately, and then turned toward the door; that, too, lay wide open. It had once been covered by a heavy cloth to keep out the wind and the rain, but that had been burned or torn away. Outside drifted only more Watchers, drawn somehow to the life that dwelled within the building.

"Wh-what's going on—?"

"Zona, are you alright?"

"Wh—what _is _that?"

He barely heard any of them. His attention was on the Watchers. These too, the ones outside the door, did not seem perplexed at the fact that one of their potential targets was glowing; indeed, nothing at all was reflected in their ugly yellow eyes. Slowly, purposefully, he began to walk toward them, leaving violet pawprints in his wake.

"No, Zona, don't—They'll…" Leo finally seemed to realize that his words were falling on deaf ears. He growled, and Zona heard him dashing up behind him, perhaps intending to grab him by the tails and pull him back, but the flames still burning brightly around Zona made him hesitate.

"Zona, what are you _doing?_" he pleaded instead. "You can't go out there, they'll—they'll—aren't you afraid anymore? Just say something, Zona, tell us what's going on!"

He stopped and turned his head. As Leo came into his field of vision—uninhibited by the flames, as though they weren't even there—the Shinx fell back, muzzle open, as did the others, clustered behind him. Cirrus ducked behind Anise, who covered her protectively with her tails.

Zona shook his head, and then turned back forward and walked outside.

He was not, as he might under other circumstances have expected, leapt upon the instant he left the building. Indeed, as he stepped out the Watchers drifted away from him, giving him clear space for several body lengths around him. He could feel them clustering around him, though, moving from other places around the building and focusing in on him. Whether he had piqued their interest or simply was proving to be a more viable target he did not know.

"_Zona_," yowled Leo desperately, unheard.

Zona looked up at the Watchers clustered around him, staring into each set of pale eyes, making sure he had the attention of every single one. Each one stared back blankly.

Finally he shook his head and looked forward again. There was one Shuppet in particular floating directly in front of him, a massive, twisted version of the Ghost-type. Like the others, it was staring back at him without expression.

The little grain of fear sitting at the back of Zona's mind vanished, consumed for now by the surge of anger and a desire to protect he had never felt before. He spoke, finally, uttering fourteen words, each one ringing with truth, in a soft voice which nevertheless managed to carry to every Watcher in the crowd.

"My name is Zonaphèras, son of Amoscandar, and I am not afraid of you."

Then he exploded.

The lavender flames that had coiled about him now burst out in every direction, flooding the ruins of Leppa Town with heat and light; rather than fear and a panic, Zona was broadcasting hope and determination to everyone around him, even the Watchers, and they couldn't stand it—making sound for the first time, an awful screeching, roaring sound, they scattered and fled under the onslaught. The fire continued to flow out of him in waves, pulses in time with his heartbeat, and every time more and more of the Ghosts would flee, until finally, every last one had vanished.

Zona collapsed suddenly, the glow leaving his body and his eyes. He was spent, breathing heavily and feeling his heart racing. The pain in his leg came back suddenly, throbbing as badly as it had before. His vision was flickering—had he spent that much energy?—but he could see and feel, with the part of him that had never felt such things before—that there remained a subtle glow in the air, a lingering aura of light and hope, and he knew that for the rest of this night, at least, the Watchers would not return.

"Zona!"

"Wow, Zona—what—what was that, that was amazing!"

"That was amazing, Zona!"

Leo came into his sight suddenly, smiling brightly and bending down to nuzzle Zona affectionately.

"I dunno what you just did, but it was amazing, Zona!"

"—fe," he managed to croak finally, pulling up the energy to speak from somewhere deep inside him. "We're—all—s-safe now, for t-tonight, t-they won't—come back…"

"So we can sleep now, and not have to worry." Leo bounced happily. "Alright! We're _safe_! _We're safe!_"

Almost immediately exhaustion overcame him, the world fading to black again. But this time he did not dream, and for the first time in a long time, he was at peace.


	10. Epilogue

A/N: … It's been fun. It's been really fun. I've grown close to the characters and I hope you have too. I've put a lot into this story, too. But just because _this _story is over doesn't mean Zona's story is over. You'll just have to wait and see…

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, and all related official material, belongs to Nintendo.

Zona is the only thing in this chapter that is mine.

Everything else that doesn't belong to either me or Nintendo belongs to ScytheRider.

* * *

**Epilogue**

_In my eyes, the dawn of a new day is never just a moment, but a blank page, a new chapter for us to compose in the cycle of life. Pokémon are never just Pokémon, rather, each individual is an embodiment of virtue and of spirit, each representing ideas, possibilities, heroes of the grand tale of history. Pain and suffering cannot remain pain and suffering for long, until they become meaningful tests of character, a testament to determination, a temporary obstacle to a glorious reward._  
- Legend, storyteller Ninetales of Team Flamewheel

My name is Zona, and I think I've finally for sure found my home again.

I've been afraid and alone for so long… I used to live in a peaceful village; I used to live a sheltered life, keeping to myself and my family. My parents protected me and loved me, but all the same they kept me sheltered and they lied to me and really I didn't know anything about the world at all.

And then, of course, my mother turned out to be in service to the Master, and…

…

Anyway, eventually I ended up here, with the Resistance, on Team Stripes. I met Leo, and I met Ray, and Taka, and Evan, and everybody, but all the same I still felt alone. I didn't feel like I could reach out again. The only Pokémon I'd ever reached out to before had been my parents, and now one was dead and the other had almost killed me. I had no way of being sure that the same thing wouldn't happen if I reached out again. I couldn't be sure they wouldn't hurt me, too.

They didn't, though. And even though I still couldn't trust them, and they saw that, they all tried their hardest to get me to warm up, to get to know me. I want to say I'm an idiot now, for not recognizing that, but how was I supposed to know any better? I was naïve. Well, I'm _still _naïve, maybe. I don't know.

They all stuck with me, though. Leo especially. Hah, he barely left me alone. And I'm grateful for that, now. He's probably the second real friend I've ever had, after Ray, and he's certainly the _best_ friend I've ever had. He taught me all kinds of things about the Resistance, and about the others on the Team, and… most importantly, he reminded me what it was like to trust.

It wasn't until we all set out for Leppa Town that I finally felt complete, though. And maybe not even then. I had plenty of Pokémon on my side, that were there to support me, to help in my search even though I hadn't known then that searching was pointless. I had Eli by my side, even, the one Pokémon I was sure would always hate me for what I was. But I was so uncertain, then. I was confused. And when I saw my mother, it only got worse.

I felt so_ torn_ then. You have no idea. My father had been this ephemeral mighty figure in the Resistance, but he was dead. And here, here was my mother, the one who had loved me and taken care of me and kept me _safe_, even though there was a war going on. And she wanted me to go with her. She was _family_, the only family I had left, or so I thought at the time. I wanted to go with her so badly. I didn't care if it meant joining the Master's side, the side that had destroyed my home. I didn't care that I'd be leaving everyone else—even Leo and Ray—behind. At least I'd be with my _family _again.

But Tyson had caught me.

That's all Leo needed to say. Because it was true. That was all the truth I needed to make my decision. My mother had loved me and kept me safe—well, she probably still loves me, I hope she does—but she'd only done that by lying and coddling and covering up. But everyone here, everyone in the Resistence, they've taught me so much—and even though it's a different kind of "love" than I was used to at the beginning, there's love that binds Team Stripes together, too.

And even now, now that I've found out about my power…

For so long, I've been plagued by fear. Not a fear of any one thing in particular, just… _fear_. That's what happens when you get touched by the Watchers. It's a fear that cuts so deep that it hurts, and I don't want anyone else, ever, to feel this pain. To feel this isolation and this fear. And now that I have this power… Well, I can't save everyone. I'd be a fool to think I could. But I'm going to save as many as I can. I'm going to learn to control my power, and do my best, and—like my father said—make my own legacy in Ambera.

I drift up from unconsciousness like a wisp of smoke escaping out into the open air; I don't know how long I've been asleep, but it must have been a long time. For a few minutes I simply lay where I'm at, not moving, content and comfortable. My leg doesn't hurt, but it's stiff and immobile: it must have been splinted while I was out.

Wait…

It feels cool. Not cold, but not warm. Like a cave. The light hitting my eyelids is flickering like fire, an orange color… Could we have made it back?

"Zona… Are you awake?"

It's a voice I don't recognize. Finally, I open my eyes. Even the dim light of the base seems bright, they've been closed for so long. I'm lying on my right side, I can tell now, with my left leg splinted and held out straight so it can heal. It doesn't hurt nearly as bad now. All that's in front of my face is a wall: I can't see the Pokémon that had spoken to me, so I crane my head back, and am greeted by the sight of a yellow-colored bipedal Pokémon smiling down at me.

"Ah… Good!" he exclaims, stepping closer and bending down so I don't have to crane my neck so far.

"I know you," I say slowly. I don't recognize him or his voice, but there is something about his bearing, or just his _presence_, that reminds me of something. I can't place my paw on it.

"Do you? Ah… Well, perhaps you do," he acknowledges. "My name is Hypno: I am one of the doctors here at the Gold Division. I tried to treat you after you came back from Blackriver City, but, alas, you were too scared to let me in."

So… had he been the image of my father I'd seen that day? Maybe so.

"The Gold Division…" I say, blinking slowly. "So we've made it back? How long have I…?"

"You go back yesterday," replies Hypno. "But apparently you've been asleep for over a day… after an interesting encounter with the Watchers."

My heart sinks. So everybody knows about me now, huh? I'd probably get flooded with visitors…

"Don't worry," adds the Psychic-type hurriedly when he sees my expression. "I don't know the details of what happened. I'm not sure anyone does, unless they were there. I _do _think you feel different this time, Zona. You've got a much larger Psychic aura now, one that I didn't detect at all before… But most Pokémon won't even notice."

I nod, feeling slightly better. "My… my leg…?"

"Well, it was a clean break, Zona, according to Dr. Orde. Whatever happened, it could have been much worse. As long as you don't jar it too badly it should heal perfectly… but you'll still be in that splint for a few weeks."

"Can … um, can I ask you a question?" Suddenly something my father had said comes back into my head.

"What is it?"

"Do… do you know a Vulpix named Lykios?"

"Lykios, ah…" He trails off. "I… _did_," he says, carefully. "But I'm not sure I'm the one that should talk about that. You would be better off asking someone else, I'm afraid."

"Alright…" I'm disappointed, but I can't make him tell me. "Um…" I hesitate before asking this question: I'm sure it won't get approved. "I… Would it be alright if I walked around a little bit? I… I'm just awfully stiff…"

Hypno looks uncertain for a moment. "I… am not sure that's wise, Zona."

"I'll be careful!" I exclaim. "I promise, I… I just need to _move_."

He seems to chew on his tongue for a few seconds.

"All right," he decides, finally, still looking slightly disapproving. "But I want you back in this room fairly soon, alright, Zona? You're going to tire yourself out walking on three legs. And though I'd really rather you _didn't_, if you feel compelled to go to another floor, _use the elevator._"

"Yes, sir." There's a pause. "Um… If I may sir, I can't… I mean, it's hard to…"

"Ah… Yes." He gently grabs me and rights me, setting me down. For a moment I feel like I'm going to lose my balance, but I shift my tails slightly to make up for my unusable leg and stand firm. "Half an hour at _most_, alright, Zona? And technically I shouldn't even let you do this…"

"Thank you, sir," I say, bowing as well as I could. "I'll probably be back well before that."

"I'll be here," says Hypno, smiling again. After a moment to make sure I can actually walk this way, I hobble out of the small room.

I'm back in the medical ward—I can tell that much. Whether I had been in the same room I'd been in while I was in my coma I don't know. I guess really it doesn't matter. I continue to hobble and stagger out of the ward. It's after dawn: the torches are orange. But it must still be early, I realize as I continue to shuffle awkwardly down the hall: there aren't very many Pokémon up and about.

Just the feeling that I'm back here is comforting. The brown, rocky walls aren't all that different from my house, and there's certainly enough fire around to make me feel comfortable. I've always liked feeling enclosed. It makes me feel safe and secure. All the same, this morning, there's something nagging me—hah, maybe like the Call—and I want to head upstairs. I manage to catch the elevator just barely—a Poliwhirl, the only Pokémon on board, notices me at the last second and prevents the lift from leaving—and I nod thanks to him as I hop on board. He gives me a thumbs-up in reply.

He gets off before me, and I'm alone on the elevator for a floor or two as it continues to head up. Eventually, it stops at a floor near the top of the base, and I'm greeted to the sight of a massive Ursaring, who steps heavily into the lift and almost crashes into me. Unable to back up with my leg as it is, I let out a short cry, and the bear looks down.

"Well, s'cuse me, little guy!" he exclaims, stopping in his tracks. "I didn't see you there! Hah, didn't mean to almost squash you."

"It's fine, sir," I reply quickly.

"Huh, already got a bad leg, huh? Well, don't let anyone say that ol' Ursa was the one to make it worse, huh? Here you go, guy," he says, and then bends down and grabs me, turning around and transplanting me from inside the elevator to the outside.

"Thank you, sir," I say quietly as he sets me down, smiling slightly.

"Any time!" He stands back up and moves to the rear of the elevator. "You have a good day, now, eh, little guy? Watch your leg, now!"

"You, too, sir. Thank you again, sir—I will."

The elevator starts up again, and the Ursaring slides out of view, still grinning. I turn and continue my slow hobble to nowhere, lost in thought, moving simply for the sake of moving.

Almost, instantly, though, I'm torn from it. There's a lot more activity going on up here, and I have to focus on where I'm going or I'll run into somebody. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to come up here... Deciding that it's best to get out of everyone else's way, I sidle around a corner into a much emptier, narrow hallway. Already it's quieter. Why did I think it was a good idea to come up here again?

This hallway is short enough that I can see the other end: it leads to another major corridor, though this one seems far less busy. All the same, it takes me a while to get down it.

_Zonaphèras, my son… I am so sorry._

What _had_ my father been doing there? He'd never said, and I hadn't bothered to ask him. I know it was him—there's no way it couldn't have been. Maybe it's a mystery I'll never solve…

"You're sure we packed everything, right?"

I freeze, a little over halfway down the hallway. The voices from behind me had all faded out, and I am used to near-silence: the voiceis sudden and loud and oddly familiar.

"Char, aren't you worrying just a little bit much?"

_Ray. That was Ray._

"Well, you never know: it could end up like that time with the Buneary kids. Remember that, Saura?"

"Well, we still got out of that one okay, didn't we? It was just a little tense for a little while…"

"I have every confidence in you," says a much deeper, gruffer voice. That's Scythe, right? Char, Saura, Ray, and Scythe… What are they doing here? "Ray's right, Char. Relax. The fact that we nearly ran into an army on that mission was a fluke. I doubt it'll happen again."

"Right." Char sounds mostly convinced, but I can still hear a little hesitance in his voice.

All the while I remain frozen, not daring to say a word. No doubt they're all heading out on a mission somewhere. Hopefully theirs will go better than mine did…

Well, I _try_ not to say a word. All the while their voices have been drifting around the corner, and now finally Team Ember itself comes into view, just for a moment, passing across the hallway I'm in and continuing down their own path. I watch them pass by in order—Scythe, Char, Saura, and Ray. And as the Raichu rounds the corner, I can't help but cry out his name.

Immediately I try to stifle it. _No, no, stupid! They're going somewhere; you can talk to Ray later_. The sound ends up like some kind of sneeze or cough.

"Ray_agh…_"

Nevertheless, he hears it: Team Ember's conversation dies out, and I see the Raichu's head peek back around the corner. Instantly his face lights up.

"Zona!"

I smile weakly back at him.

"Hey!" He chuckles. His head disappears for a moment. "Hey, guys, just go ahead, alright? You don't have to wait. I'll catch up."

"You sure, Ray?"

"I'll be fine, guys; just don't leave without me, alright?"

There isn't even time for a reply, as he peels around the corner at a sprint, dashing on all fours. He's bearing the bag for Team Ember—why is it that he always ends up carrying the bag? Well, he's a selfless Pokémon, I guess—and it flops and bounces heavily across his back as he runs. He seems to spot my leg at the last second and pulls up short a few pawlengths from me.

"Wow, Zona—what happened? That looks like it hurt…"

I shake my head. "It's a long story." I look back up the hallway. "You… you didn't have to come back to talk to me. You're going somewhere, right? I didn't mean to…"

"Hey," he says, cutting me off. "I haven't seen you in two weeks, Zona, I can afford to take a little time away from the mission. Besides, it's not even going to be a hard one: Char's just worrying about it too much. I mean, we've got Scythe with us." He shrugs, chuckling slightly.

"There… there _is_ one thing I wanted to say to you, though," I admit, looking down.

"Oh? What's up?"

I inhale. "Thanks for… putting up with me."

"Putting up with…?" He seems genuinely confused. "What exactly are you talking about, Zona?"

"When I first showed up here…" I want to shuffle my paw across the floor, but I can't: I'll lose my balance. "I was pretty annoying, wasn't I? I didn't know a lot, and I kept to myself a lot, and I didn't understand all your talk about family, and…" I shrug as well as I can. "I mean… All things considered, I was a bit of a naïve jerk, and… Thanks for helping me get over that."

A pause.

"And… and you were right, Ray." I look back up at him finally: he's smiling broadly. "I was stupid to not see it before. When I came here, I thought I was all alone, because my family was gone… But why should family be defined by blood or parentage or anything of the sort? Family isn't necessarily the group that gave you life… Family is the group that _loves you_. So now I've found a family, and I've found my purpose, and…"

I trail off, uncertain for a moment of how I want to finish. It comes to me almost instantly, however.

"…I've found my home. And you helped with that, Ray, probably more than you know, so… Thanks."

Suddenly I'm caught up in one of his massive hugs. He's careful to avoid my leg, and I'm grateful for it, but for the moment I just sit there and let him hug me. He doesn't say anything else, and that's just fine with me. He says everything he needs to say with the hug.

"Ray… You should get going, though," I mutter finally.

"I should, shouldn't I?" he mumbles into my ear. Slowly he lets me go, and I balance carefully on three legs again. He backs up, still smiling. "It was nothing, Zona. Really it wasn't. 'Cause I knew in the end you'd come around and see it this way. And isn't it so much more bearable now that you have?"

I nod.

"So maybe we're in the middle of a war." The Raichu shrugs. "The thing is, we're in a war _together_. And when we're all together, _nobody _can stop us. The fire'll never die, 'til the last ember fades."

He picks up the bag again—he'd dropped it when he'd grabbed me—and slings it over his shoulder with a single easy motion.

"I'll see you around, Zona."

"You, too, Ray."

He turns around and dashes back the way he came, skidding to another halt before he rounds the corner and turning back to look me in the eye again.

"Oh, hey, Zona—Can I stop by later and have you tell me what happened? It must have been exciting!"

"I'm no storyteller," I remind him. "… But sure. I'll be in the medical ward…"

"Alright!" He punches the air enthusiastically. "I'll talk to you later, Zona!"

"Good luck, Ray."

"Thanks, Zona." He smiles. "Heal up, alright?"

"I'll do my best," I promise him. He grins again and vanishes after the rest of his Team. I stand and stare after him for a few minutes, thinking, before remembering the strict time limit Hypno had set. Hastily I turn and begin to hobble back the way I'd come.

But this time the trip doesn't seem nearly so long.

* * *

**Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Silver Resistance – Mystery of the Heart – THE END**

A/N: … I thank you for keeping with me this long, and reading the story to its conclusion. I thank ScytheRider for being kind enough to allow me to make my little mark on Ambera. I thank the rest of Team Immersion, for motivating me and giving me ideas and helping me get through the tough parts. … Even if that sounds rather redundant.

This story has finally been finished, but that does not mean I am done writing. Hardly. I have several other projects to work on, not least of which is restarting _A Fear of Change_. Also, for those who want to see _just a little bit more_ of my work in Ambera, I advise you to check out my deviantART profile (Lysanderas).

…

It's _finished_… That's the first time I've ever been able to say that. It's a sad feeling, but… a wonderful one as well. Note that slight edits will be made to the first few chapters over the course of the next few days, to clear up ambiguities.

Thank you again. I wish you the best day in the world! :)

- Diego Zeyon


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